More Than Useless
by StarVix
Summary: Amy Rose has been chosen to take the King's message to a dangerous city in the Borderlands. Lucifer is determined to stop her at all costs. Luckily for her, the King has sent her help from another world...they just can't understand why he sent THEM...
1. Chapter 1

**This is the third in my Christian Sonic series, if at all possible, please read **_**I Still Believe**_** and **_**I Surrender All**_** before reading this one. My disclaimer for the story: I do not own Sonic the Hedgehog or any characters affiliated with him. The Scripture used is from the NIV unless otherwise noted. The songs are all from their respectable owners and I mean no ill will by using them. The title song, 'More Than Useless' is sung by Relient K. To God be all the glory.**

**Chapter One—New Beginnings**

"**For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways," declares the LORD.—Isaiah 55:8**

**For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.—Philippians 4:13 NLT**

**I lay me down, let it rise up in my soul**

**I'm falling down, so You pick me up again**

**God tear it down, the walls**

**That the enemy built around me**

**Send Your Spirit down**

**Where the Spirit is, there is freedom**

**Oh God, without You I can do nothing**

**By God, I can do all things**

**-**_**By God**_**, Disciple**

"Won't you please reconsider, Amy?"

The Lady Amy Rose, appointed by the King as Missionary to the Borderlands, looked over to Vanilla Rabbit, who was furiously scrubbing at a dirty plate to hide her obvious distress.

Amy had spent the last ten years in the Borderlands, which was the term given to the lands that were on the fringe of Lucifer the Dragon's domain. The Borderlands were generally places of great oppression, for Lucifer enjoyed causing suffering, but the worst of his deeds were reserved for King's Citizens. In spite of this, the King's word was thriving in many places in the Borderlands, and many were becoming His Citizens. In other places, though, the King's message was still unheard.

Vanilla Rabbit had formed an unlikely friendship with Amy Rose since the time she and her two friends, Sonic and Shadow, had rescued her daughter, Cream, from the dreaded Leviathan. Although she had had knowledge of the King for years—her dearly departed cousin, Bunnie D'Coolette, had seen to that—she had always figured she would have time for such matters later on. Her harrowing ordeal with the Leviathan had ripped that illusion away, as she realized for the first time how unpredictably short life was.

Vanilla wiped her eyes on the sleeves of her snow-white Citizen's tunic, as her hands were too wet to do her much good, being elbow-deep in warm soapy water. She had always been anxious when Amy had been journeying alone through the Borderlands, but had been confident that the young pink hedgehog could handle it. But what Amy had just told her…

"Amy, you just can't go to Pergam!" Vanilla sobbed, her attempt to maintain her composure ending in a bitter failure. "It's…it's…it's just awful. There are thieves and deserts and mountains and poisonous, carnivorous creatures and…and that's just on the road to _get _there! You know that Pergam has that horrid Dark Legion commander there, don't you?"

Amy winced visibly, but she nodded, steadfast in her decision. "I know it's dangerous, Vanilla. And I also know that the Dark Legion is unfriendly towards King's Citizens…" Amy trailed off there, starchily aware of the amazingly bold understatement she had just made, and knowing that Vanilla knew this as well. The Dark Legion was a group of individuals who were completely devoted to Lucifer, and their commander was Lucifer's new top lieutenant, the one who had taken Mephiles the Dark's place. Most of what was known about them was rumor; no Citizen had ever met the Dark Legion and lived to describe them as of yet. Not even the name of their leader was known. Only that Pergam was where their main headquarters was centered.

However, she continued as if none of this was obvious. "But I feel as if that is where the King would have me go, and it is my desire to do so."

Vanilla gave a long, pained sigh. "Are you sure you're hearing him correctly dear?" she asked, grasping at straws for some hope that Amy would change her mind.

"I wouldn't have told you if I wasn't, Vanilla," Amy said, putting away a dry dish and hugging the older woman tightly. "Oh, do please stop crying. I will be ok, you know the King will protect me."

Vanilla quickly recomposed herself and gave Amy a weak smile. "I know he will, dear, I just wish you had bodyguards, or something. Oh, I know you can look after yourself, don't give me that look! It's just that no one has ever made it to Pergum on their own, you know."

"I know, Vanilla, and don't worry," Amy turned at took another dish to dry. "The King's Spirit has told me I am indeed going to have," she giggled, "bodyguards, on the trip."

Vanilla relaxed visibly. "Oh, that does help ease my mind, Amy, I do wish you had mentioned that earlier. Do you know who they are?"

Amy shook her head. "No, only that they're from Sonic's world—you remember I told you about that—and that they are going to be instrumental to the Dark Legion's downfall, so that the King's message can be freely heard."

Vanilla looked impressed. "My! That does sound impressive, Amy. I wonder who on earth—or some alternate earth, for that matter—is brave and heroic enough to stop the Dark Legion's terror in the Borderlands? They must be great warriors for the King."

Amy looked thoughtful. "I don't know, Vanilla. But He said something very peculiar to me as He parted. 'Remember, My ways are not your ways, and My strength is shown clearly through weakness.' I haven't quite figured out what it means, but I'm sure when the time comes it will be made clear."

The two women ceased their conversation, both content with each other's silent company, both wondering about Amy's mysterious soon-to-be companions…

* * *

><p>Thousands of miles away, unbeknownst to the two, evil forces were plotting.<p>

Dr. Finitevus, current leader of the Dark Legion after he had arranged an 'accident' for his former superior (something that was not only allowed, but congratulated, so long as he remembered who the _real_ boss was) was awaiting an audience with the Dragon himself, Lucifer.

Unlike most of the Dark Legion, Finitevus knew for a fact what kind of being Lucifer was. He most certainly wasn't stupid and gullible enough to swallow all the trash he spewed to his followers about the Dragon being the kind, gentle, true king who had been unjustly usurped by the King and His Son. No, he knew Lucifer was an evil, manipulative liar. But then, so was he, so the two of them worked well together.

Dr. Finitevus was an echidna, albeit a rather twisted one, with black tattoos which littered his body, marring his otherwise snow white fur. His eyes were a sickly yellowish/black, and the wicked glint in them coupled with the black cape that cloaked him left no doubt in anyone's mind that he was completely evil, completely insane, or some bizarre combination of the two. But then again, he really didn't care what others thought of him, so long as they did as he wanted or he could kill them for defying him.

Finitevus idly wondered what mood Lucifer would be in today. It was a horrid experience to go before the dragon when he was angry, which was a given, but he had discovered that it would be equally frightening in a completely different way when the dragon was in a good mood. But then, the dragon thrived off the fear of others, so it was natural that he would be scary. Kind of obvious even, and he was getting sidetracked, which was not a good thing when preparing to go before Lucifer.

He shook his head to clear it, then resolutely took the last few steps of his journey that would bring him into Lucifer's view.

As was to be expected, he could not properly see Lucifer in the dimness of his cave, merely his malevolent, glowing yellow eyes. It was a tactic designed to keep those under him off-balanced, as well as frighten the crap out of them. Finitevus knew this, he used variations of the same tactics with his own underlings, but Lucifer raised such things to an art form. Or perhaps it was knowing that the dragon could snap him like a twig if he so wished that made cold shivers run up Finitevus' spine.

"Dr. Finitevus, so nice of you to come," Lucifer practically purred.

Finitevus could almost hear his internal moan, it was so potent. It seemed Lucifer was in a rare good mood, which was _not _a good thing as previously established. "It was my pleasure, lord Lucifer," he said evenly, not letting his dread flow over into his voice. If anything, knowing his discomfort would just make Lucifer that much happier.

"Things are happening, Finitevus, and they are going to concern you," Lucifer continued. "My spies have discovered a plan of the King to infiltrate Pergum."

The echidna scoffed. "Pergum is inpregnable and it's citizen's are loyal to m—to you, lord Lucifer."

Lucifer's eyes rolled in the darkness, a rather disconcerting sight to say the least. "You are an idiot," he told Finitevus matter-of-factly. "Every fortress has its weakness, and every person's loyalties are as fickle as straw caught in the wind. The King is sending Amy Rose."

"I think my Legion can handle one silly little girl," Finitevus said with a slight smile that he could not hide.

"You would," Lucifer commented dryly. "This 'little girl' is the biggest disaster to hit this Realm since the King decided to bring in operatives from other ones! And if twice isn't bad enough, he's doing it again! Haven't I suffered enough?"

"I promise you, I can handle the girl, and the King's unwelcomed 'guests'," Finitevus assured Lucifer.

"You? It's a miracle you can put your shoes on the right feet every morning. No, he wants to send people from the other Realm to mess with me? Two can play at that game! I've already taken measures to bring my own operatives here, and they will deal with the King's 'guests.' You will work with them, and you will have to work fast."

"As you wish, lord Lucifer," Finitevus said graciously, inwardly seething at the way Lucifer doubted his abilities.

"I mean it Finitevus. Our one chance to defeat these interlopers is that they have no _idea _how powerful they are. The hedgehog and the echidna learned quickly as they are accustomed to power, but these new opponents are not and have not quiet comprehended how much they can achieve with the King's help. If you are not fast, the challenges they face will _show _them what is hidden within them and they will be too strong for you. And then you will die," This last statement was stated cheerily, the way a five-year-old would exclaim what their favorite treat was to a new friend. It somehow made the statement seem that much worse.

Perhaps he was a glutton for punishment, but he felt he needed to know. "Will I die by their hand, or yours?"

"Oh, I don't really care, so long as you are dead," Lucifer replied dismissively, which wasn't quiet what Finitevus wanted to hear. "You may go now, Finitevus, and prepare for my agents' arrival."

"Yes, my lord. How will I know them?"

Lucifer gave a dark chuckle. "Believe me, they are impossible to miss!"

Finitevus bowed and rushed away from the cave, Lucifer's eerie laughter echoing behind him. No matter how fast he ran, however, he couldn't shake the feeling he was heading towards his own impending doom…


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two—Meet Our…Heroes?**

**If the axe is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed but skill will bring success.—Ecclesiastes 10:10**

**In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.—Proverbs 16:9**

**Say hey, it's a good day**

**Even if things aren't going my way**

**Jesus is Lord and I am saved**

**So hey, it's a good day**

**-**_**It's a good day, **_**FFH**

"Oh, I'm a gummy bear, yes I'm a gummy bear! I'm a yummy, chummy, funny, lucky gummy bear. I'm a jelly bear, cuz I'm a gummy bear. Oh, I'm a movin', groovin', jammin', singin' gummy bear…."

Vector Crocodile, leader of the second-rate detective agency known as the Chaotix, rubbed his throbbing head and glared down at the young six-year-old bee who was currently singing the Gummy Bear Song to his little heart's content.

"Charmy," he hissed through clenched teeth. "I don't know if anyone's told you this yet, but when you are trailing a suspect, you should be _quiet_ so that he doesn't spot you and blow your cover!" He took a deep breath to calm himself, then turned to the third member of their agency for confirmation. "Right, Espio?"

"The gummy bear song has to be _the _most annoying song in the history of the planet," Espio mused, a far-off look in his slightly glazed over eyes.

"Espio!"

"Huh? Oh, right," Espio snapped back to the present and nodded.

Vector glared at him. "You have no idea what I just said, do you?" he accused.

"Not really," Espio replied, shrugging to show that he really didn't care, either.

"Why are we here again?" Charmy asked rather loudly, so his voice echoed throughout the empty hallway they were in.

'Here' was a science facility in the middle of Station Square. Most of the major scientific breakthroughs in the past fifty years had been discovered in this building, and anyone interested in scientific studies dreamed of being hired by this firm.

The Chaotix were not interested in scientific studies, or science in general (although Charmy did enjoy watching science fiction) so it was, in fact, a pretty good question. Or it would have been, if Charmy hadn't been told the answer to said question nine times already.

Vector sighed and made it an even ten. "Charmy, for the last time, the guys we're after spotted us because _you _were singing the Gummy Bear Song after I _told _you not to sing it and they darted in here to loose us. So we came in after them."

"That was forty minutes ago," Espio reminded him. "We've been all over this building and we still haven't found them. They've evaded us, Vector, just admit it."

"I admit nothing!" Vector replied stubbornly.

Charmy started to bob his head to an imaginary tune that only he could hear. "Beba bi Duba duba yum yum, Beba bi Duba duba yum yum…"

"STOP SINGING THE GUMMY BEAR SONG!" Vector screamed.

"Shh, Vector, or the bad guys will hear you!" Charmy scolded.

For some inexplicable reason, Vector felt like crying. "Why do I even bother?" he wondered.

"Why are you so interested in these criminals anyway, Vector? We haven't been paid to take them to justice, and we're not exactly going to be on the next 'Top 10 richest men alive list'," Espio reminded their leader, although he shouldn't have had too. Vector was normally very thrifty with their budget and _he _was the one pressing them to find paying jobs so they could afford luxuries like food and a roof over their head. Since this new criminal group started, however, he had been, well, obsessed.

"You _know_ why," Vector chided the chameleon. "We have a personal interest in these creeps."

Espio rolled his eyes. "For the last time, just because a group of criminals decide to call themselves the Destructix, it doesn't mean they're trying to rip off our name."

Vector merely set his jaw in what Espio liked to call his 'Don't you dare contradict me again' look, so the chameleon wisely decided to drop the point. Although he would never understand why his fearless leader wanted to hunt down a bunch of criminals for free and throw them in jail for copyright infringement, of all things.

The Ninja sighed and reminded himself it wasn't really important, only they'd better catch these criminals quickly and find a paying customer or they would deplete their already meager funds. Of course, that's assuming they didn't simply starve to death wandering these deserted, winding corridors that all looked the same and no one would ever find them. An image of a crocodile, chameleon, and bee's bleached white bones baking under the fluorescent hallway lights popped into his head and depressed him immensely.

He was spared any more depressing images of possible outcomes of this particular endeavor by Charmy's squeal. "Lookit, lookit!" he said, flying becoming erratic in his excitement. He pointed down the hall. "A person! We're saved!"

"We don't need saved, Charmy!" Vector snapped, looking annoyed with the bee's lack of faith in his directional skills. Espio decided that Vector needn't know about his own daytime nightmares and turned his attention on the person, a security guard who was slumped against a doorway, obviously unconscious.

"He looks injured, Vector," the ninja pointed out, instantly alert for any signs of attack.

Vector turned from where he was glaring at Charmy and knelt beside the guard, checking the unconscious armadillo for a pulse and quite relieved to see that there was a strong one. "Looks like he'll have a nasty bruise and a headache when he wakes up," he commented. "But he'll live. Seems that our bad guys have come this way."

Almost as if waiting for a cue, the guard moaned and started to move, his hand instinctively clutching his throbbing head as he opened his eyes. They widened in shock as he took in the three. His hand dropped to his side where his gun or taser or whatever weapon they had issued him was supposed to be, only it seemed that his assailants had thought fit to relieve him of it.

"W-who are you?" the guard, painfully aware of how defenseless he was and a bit disoriented, blurted out.

Vector flashed his detective's badge. "Relax, we're the good guys," he assured the guard. "Name's Vector, Chaotix Detective Agency. Did you see the guys who did this to you…" he glanced at the guard's nametag. "…Mighty?"

Mighty the Armadillo shook his head. "Sorry, they got me from behind, detective. I didn't see anything."

Vector sighed, frustrated that his potential lead had turned into a dead end. "Alright then. Can you stand? Need to call an ambulance?"

"I think I'm ok," Mighty said, standing up slowly and stumbling a bit. He shook his head to clear it and winced. "I'd take some extra strength Tylenol, though."

"Here," Vector took a packet with two extra strength Tylenols embedded within and handed it to Mighty. "Knock yourself out."

Mighty gave him an incredulous look as he took the packet. "You usually carry Tylenol around with you, detective?"

"Trust me, with partners like mine, it's a necessity," Vector assured the armadillo.

"Hi mister!" Charmy chirruped, right in the injured armadillo's ear in a painfully high voice. "I'm Charmy! Do you like the Gummy Bear Song? I know the whoooole thing!"

Mighty winced. "I see what you mean," He confided to Vector before popping the Tylenol into his mouth and swallowing.

"Vector," Espio called from a bit farther down the room. As usual, he had been looking for clues while his teammates slacked off and chatted with the locals. And he had found something quite intriguing.

"What've you got?" Vector asked, walking over to his partner. Espio nodded towards the door, which had been literally ripped off its hinges as tossed to the side. Vector inspected the twisted door and the gaping hole. "Subtle," he commented dryly. "Ok, let's go check it out. And be on your guard, they're obviously dangerous."

"You think?" Espio asked sarcastically, disappearing into the room. He was followed by Vector, Charmy, and, after a slight hesitation, Mighty.

* * *

><p>The room was full of computers, with a strange looking machine in the middle. It was a complete dead end, with no doors or windows for the criminals to have used. But it was also completely empty, people-wise.<p>

"Where'd they go?" Vector asked, looking around for clues, but careful not to disturb potential evidence. "Did they double back and go back out?"

"They must have," Espio replied. "There's no where else they could have gone."

"You really shouldn't be in here anyway," Mighty added, looking nervous. "This room is off-limits to non-personnel. They've got a really dangerous experiment here, it's supposed to make it possible to travel into other dimensions, but so far it just makes stuff explode."

"Explode?" Vector asked, looking around worriedly.

"Yeah," Mighty said. "Mostly they've tested it on watermelon and stuff like that, and the pieces splat all over the place. The janitor's threatening to quit."

Vector winced, already imagining himself taking the watermelon's place and the janitor making good on his threat. Leaving the room was starting to seem like a _very _good idea. "I don't think they're here, so there's really no point in staying," he said, eager to leave. "So let's just…where's Charmy?"

Espio whirled around, but Charmy was nowhere to be seen. "He was right behind me a second ago," he said, his eyes widening. "Why weren't you watching him?"

"I thought _you _were watching him!" Vector snapped, worried over the little bee's fate.

It was Mighty who spotted Charmy first, and the color drained out of his face when he did. Charmy was poking around under the firing range of the deadly machine, the controls to activate it in his hand, though where he'd found that was a mystery for the ages. "Hey, little boy? You really shouldn't be playing with that!" Mighty informed him shakily, instinctively moving towards him to take the controls away before he killed himself.

"Charmy!" Vector and Espio had also spotted him, and were equally as panicked. Rushing towards him, Espio cried, "Charmy, don't touch that!"

"Drop it Charmy!" Vector yelled as the three of them reached Charmy together and grabbed him simultaneously.

Startled, Charmy dropped the controls, which crashed to the floor, activating it. A bright light enveloped the four of them and the world went dark…

* * *

><p>"I'm dead," Vector gasped, sitting up and blurting out the last thought that had been on his mind as the machine had powered on. "I'm dead, I'm dead, I died, and I'm dead."<p>

He slowly began to realize that he was sitting inside of a valley amongst several beautiful wildflowers, surrounded by several majestic mountains looming in the distance. "That's weird," he mused. "Isn't Heaven supposed to have a big pearly gate, or something?"

"I don't think we're dead, Vector," Espio informed him matter-of-factly.

Vector started, having not realized that he wasn't alone before this. He turned and stared at Espio for a long moment. "We must be dead," he said, convinced. "You're dressed in white."

Espio was, in fact, dressed in a white-and-gold ninja outfit. Vector hadn't really thought of a white ninja outfit whenever he thought about Heavenly dress codes, but he supposed that, after all, Heaven was supposed to be where you were happy, and dressing like a ninja had always made Espio happy, so it sort of made sense. The big thick belt he wore kind of threw the ninja-ness off a bit, but it also seemed to work anyway.

Vector looked down at himself. He was also in white, though he was relieved to see he wasn't in a ninja suit. Instead, he wore a thick leather vest and some slacks that seemed to suit him, with the same type of belt Espio was wearing. His sneakers were white too, he realized, although they were the same type of sneakers he'd always enjoyed wearing. Something on his head was heavy, and he reached up and felt a small, round helmet covering the top of his noggin. It was a comfortable weight, though, almost as if he was used to it, and he wasn't too keen to take it off, so he let it be.

He looked around again, and soon spotted Charmy stirring from the grass nearby, and noticed that he was wearing a cute little plastic armor kit. (Also white.) Huh, the strangest things made that bee happy, he guessed.

Somehow knowing that Vector was still under the assumption that they were dead and this was Heaven, sighed loudly. "Vector we are not dead. Trust me, I know!"

"And just how do you know?" Vector asked.

Espio pointed down to Vector's feet. "He told me so."

Vector looked down, and noticed a snow white dove sitting calmly on the ground. His heart skipped a beat when he saw the Dove, and he felt utterly contented. "We're not dead?" he asked.

The Dove chuckled. **"No, Vector, you are not."**

Vector gasped, his hand flying to his mouth. The voice, he _knew _that voice. He couldn't say just how, as he had never audibly heard it before, and he was making no sense, but he just _knew_… "I know You," he whispered, his eyes tearing up. "I know You!"

The Dove nodded, looking pleased. **"You do," **he confirmed. **"You have known Me for several years now, Vector."**

Vector's mind was whirling as he tried to take this all in. "You're…and I'm…not dead…how?"

"It's an alternate dimension with medieval and monarchy based themes," Espio explained. "Everything He has explained to me seems to have some sort of symbolic meaning."

Vector found himself rolling his eyes. "You think everything has some sort of symbolic meaning, even what we had for supper last night."

Espio didn't press the point, knowing how stubborn Vector could be. "God is known as the King here, and Christians are King's Citizens. They're all dressed in white variations of King's Armor, which is basically symbolizing the Armor of God—"

"Pastor Tony preached about that once," Vector remembered.

"Yes, now please let me finish," Espio waited, but seeing that Vector was honoring his request, he continued. "Basically, the job we have is the same, serve God and tell others about Him. And this dove here is how the Holy Spirit reveals Himself in this dimension."

The King's Holy Spirit nodded again. **"There is something that I wish for the Chaotix to do," **he said by way of explanation.

"We'll do it," Vector answered without the slightest bit of hesitation.

"That was fast," Espio chuckled. Vector would usually demand every slightest detail of a potential job out of a prospective customer to make sure it was something worth doing.

"_I'm_ not telling Him no!" Vector explained defensively.

Charmy had been awake for the majority of the conversation, but had been uncharacteristically silent, staring at the Holy Spirit intently. The Dove turned to him and seemed to smile. **"Hello, Charmy," **he said kindly.

Charmy grinned and giggled. "Hi," he said. "I still read my Storybook Bible and pray _every _day."

"**And a wonderful job you do of it, too," **the Spirit complimented him.

Charmy's grin got even bigger. "Thanks," he said. "I can read it all by myself now."

"Hey," Vector started, suddenly remembering something. "What happened to that security guard that was with us? What was his name? Marty?"

"Mighty," Espio reminded him.

"Right. Where's he?" Vector looked around and finally spotted Mighty. It was harder to do than with the others, as their white outfits had clashed with the ground and caused them to stand out. Mighty, though, was sort of wearing armor, though it was a dirty, rusty color, and he was not wearing any type of helmet or belt. He was still out cold.

"Poor guy, he's been knocked unconscious so often recently," Vector said sympathetically, silently wondering at the difference in armor.

The Spirit looked at Mighty with a wistful, longing expression. **"He is so important to Me," **He said. **"He once knew Me as you do, but he has fallen away. How I long for him to come back! Though his sins are many, I would make Him white as newly fallen snow. I would have you take him with you, Vector."**

Vector nodded quickly. "Sure, I won't let him outta my sight then. Uh…where're we going?"

"**Follow this path here until you come to the house where this place's Amy Rose is staying, then accompany her on her journey," **the Spirit replied. **"Remember, I AM always with you, and I AM able to help you with all your trials."**

"Got it, we'll remember," Vector nodded. A loud groan from Mighty caused the Chaotix to look towards him. "So anyway, are You..." when Vector turned back, the Spirit had vanished.

But the Chaotix could feel Him near.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3—There is a Purpose**

**But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations.—Psalms 33:11**

**Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails.—Proverbs 19:21**

**Beautiful Lord, wonderful Savior**

**I know for sure all of my days are held in Your hands**

**Crafted into Your perfect plans**

_**The Potter's Hands, **_**Hillsong**

Her heart raced with excitement as she walked down the darkened hallways on her way to her lord Finitevus' audience chambers. She had been summoned by the great leader himself, and she was naturally thrilled at the great honor. In her haste several unkempt strands of pink hair fell into her eyes, so she hastily brushed them back, taking care of the metallic dreadlock that still throbbed at times, reminding her that she had given herself, mind, body, and soul, to the Dark Legion, as had her parents and grandparents before her. Her arms were also metal, whether encased or replaced by the material she did not know, but unlike her dreadlock her arms didn't feel anything, although they grew heavy at times.

Julie Su the Echidna paused outside the door to Finitevus' chambers and smoothed out her half-black, half-blue tank top to make herself look more presentable before entering. She took a deep breath to steady herself, then she quickly pushed open the large double doors and walked into the audience chambers.

Her indigo eyes eagerly scanned the inside of the chamber so she could commit it to memory—for this could very well be the only time she ever saw the great Finitevus in her entire lifetime—but to her great disappointment it was much too dark to make out. The chamber was pitch black, save for a small round circle of moonlight that fell from an open skylight in the roof, which lit up the throne itself just enough for her to make out the form of Finitevus.

"Come forward, my dear," he told her in a kindly, grandfatherly tone.

Thrilled, yet feeling a dread she could not properly explain within herself, Julie Su obeyed her master's summons and walked toward, stopping a few feet away from the throne and bowing to him in respect. "You called me, my lord?" she asked, trying to keep her voice from quivering.

"Lucifer himself has given us a great task to preform," Finitevus informed her. "And I have deemed you worthy to carry it out for me."

Julie Su's breath caught in her throat. This was an honor even greater than any she had dared to imagine when she had been first summoned! "I will not fail you," she vowed.

"Our enemy the King dares to send his vile Citizen miscreants to our territory to wreak havoc on our fair people. Lucifer in his wisdom has sent faithful servants from other worlds to come and destroy them. You are to find them and aid them in their quest, and report back to me when the enemy is defeated."

"I will, my lord," Julie Su vowed, eager to show herself loyal to her master. "How will I know these servants?"

"You will know them," Finitevus told her. "You will hear them mourn for their home. When you do, you will tell them that Lucifer the all-powerful will send them home if they will pay him with the death of his enemies. If they accept, that is your sign that they are Lucifer's agents. Do you understand?"

"I do."

"And do you know the price for failure?" Finitevus asked her pointedly.

Unbidden, Julie Su's hand went to her throat; the price of failure was death, and not a very pleasant one at that. "I do," she assured him.

"Then go, my child, and complete your assignment with all haste."

Julie Su bowed lower, then quickly stood and rushed out of the room. Although she couldn't say why, the presence of her master filled her with an unease she longed to end.

But although leaving did lessen the unease she felt in her soul, she had realized long ago…it was always there, buried within her, and it never truly left.

* * *

><p>Thousands of miles away, in the middle of an ocean, a man slept. He was not on a boat, nor was he near the water in any way. He was nearly two hundred miles above it, on an island that literally floated in the sky. It was a beautiful island, and the night was calm and serine. There was no reason for the sleeping figure to be ill at ease.<p>

He slept fitfully anyway.

_Darkness. It surrounded him, a horrible piercing darkness, so thick he could feel it. An oppressive, all-enveloping darkness that was choking him. He was drowning in it. The darkness was literally becoming a thick, inky, wet watery substance and he couldn't…get…out…_

_Laughter suddenly flowed through the river of darkness. The first hint of light was afforded to him, glowing, malevolent eyes that reminded him of blood. "You are coming with me, to share in my punishment, going to your doom, swept away by your own river of sin!"_

_The eyes faded and the drowning man could just make out a waterfall, falling into a deep abyss. He heard screams of regret and agony coming from the bottom, even though he couldn't see anything. The smell of brimstone filled the air and made him gag. His panic rose as he realized he was being swept into the chasm._

"_No!" he screamed. "I don't want to go there! Somebody help me!"_

_A voice suddenly boomed through the darkness. __**"I AM the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father except through Me."**_

"_What? Who are you?" the doomed man cried. "I need help!"_

"_**Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved."**_

"_But who are You?" the man sobbed. "How can I call on Your Name if I don't even know who You are? I can't even get to You!"_

_A bright light lit up the area, and the man looked over to where it was. A man in white armor was reaching for him. "Listen to me!" he pleaded. "I know who He is! Listen to me and I'll tell you how to get to Him! Only He can save you! Listen to me, please!"_

_The doomed man sobbed again, this time with relief and he made his way to the man in the white armor. "I'll listen! Help me!" he cried. The white man heard him and reached for him. He was dangerously close to the abyss now, but the man on the bank was so very close. He reached for the man's hand, but it looked like he wouldn't make it before he fell…_

"NO! I DON'T WANT TO GO THERE!" Knuckles the Echidna screamed as he awoke from the nightmare, drenched in sweat and gasping for breath. He looked around his island, breathing heavily as he assured himself that he was safe, that he wasn't drowning in a black river of his own misdeeds, falling to his own doom.

The dream had terrified him greatly, though. It had been a very vivid one, and disturbed him. The echidna race had always believed that the dream you saw the most vividly was not a dream at all, but rather a vision or a metaphor, describing one's future. And this wasn't even the first time he had had this particular dream. He had had it with an increasing frequency that alarmed him. Knuckles was determined that this was a vision that he could not allow to come to pass.

He had been shown a way out, though. A man in white armor. Knuckles had seen such a man before; after that wicked Mephiles the Dark had tricked him into thinking a man named Sonic the Hedgehog had stolen the Master Emerald. Sonic and his friends had been wearing white armor. The odds that he could find them was low, but he was convinced in his soul that he was lost unless he found a man in white armor who would show him the way to his future safety.

Knuckles considered his options for what seemed to be an eternity, then decided on a course of action. He would leave the island and capture the first man he saw who wore white armor and interrogate him. If the man had no good answers for him, then he would know that the dream was just that, a dream. And if the man did have answers, then he would listen to him so he would be saved from his fate.

Pleased with his decisive course of action, Knuckles took preparations to hide the Master Emerald until he returned. Then, he made his way to the edge of his island, took a deep breath, and jumped, gliding to the nearest landmass in search of a man in white armor.

Up on a branch of a nearby tree, unseen by the echidna, a white dove watched him leave with a gentle smile upon His beak. He had been stirring the echidna's conscience, the way he had been stirring the conscience of the maid Julie Su, as he was preparing to stir the conscience of the armadillo, and had ultimately caused the journeys each was about to take. So long as those who knew Him and whom He had called obeyed His voice, the heavens would rejoice at the knowledge of three new souls coming to know the King as their King before their journeys were complete…

* * *

><p>The Chaotix huddled around the unconscious form of Mighty the Armadillo, at a loss at how to deal with him.<p>

"We need to get moving," Vector would say periodically. He wasn't much for patience, or for hanging around when an objective was clear. They were supposed to be following the road looking for Amy Rose, not huddling around watching a security guard get his beauty sleep!

Charmy nodded, before poking Mighty in the nose with a long stick he'd found lying on the ground. "Poke," he said softly. He waited approximately two seconds, then he nudged Mighty's nose with his stick yet again. "Poke…Poke…Poke…"

"Charmy, I don't think that poking him repeatedly in the nose is going to wake him up," Espio said matter-of-factly.

Charmy regarded him for a long moment. "Why?" he finally asked.

"Because you've been doing that for five minutes and it still hasn't worked."

Charmy considered for a moment, then turned to Mighty. "Wake up!" he said loudly, whacking him on the nose so hard the stick whistled through the air and made a horrible smacking sound when it landed.

"Ooh!" Vector winced in sympathy before yanking the stick away from Charmy. "Well, he's not waking up any time soon," he added, glaring at the little bee as a red welt started to show along Mighty's nose and muzzle.

"We need to get going quickly though. It'll be night soon," Espio pointed out, looking up to the sky where the sun was setting along the horizon.

"Move over!" Vector suddenly yelled, fed up with the whole situation. He pushed Charmy and Espio out of his way, grabbed Mighty around his waist, and slung the unconscious armadillo over his shoulder. He adjusted Mighty's dead weight so that it was more comfortable, and started to walk down the road.

Espio and Charmy looked at each other, shrugged, and raced to catch up with their leader.

"Do you need help carrying him, Vector?" Espio asked evenly, willing to help out if it was required.

"Naw, what's the point of having all this muscle if I can't use it to carry something heavy every now and again?" Vector asked, shifting Mighty's weight. "Although Mickey could stand to cut down on his Krispy Kreme runs, if you ask me."

"It's Mighty," Espio corrected automatically.

"Oh, so that's why it's so heavy. There's two of 'em."

Espio sighed and shook his head, although he chose not to try to correct the mistake, knowing it would get him nowhere. A companionable silence fell upon the three as they walked towards their inevitable destination, wherever it may be.

* * *

><p>Mighty the Armadillo had never expected to wake up again. Even if it had, he certainly hadn't expected to be upside down, feeling the blood rushing to his face. He <em>definitely <em>never expected the first thing he laid eyes on be the swinging tail of a crocodile's backside.

An interesting but useless fact was that the first thought that crossed his mind was, _'I _really _hate Mondays.'_

Soon after, Mighty officially panicked. "What's going on?" he shrieked, struggling when he realize he was moving and something was restraining him around his midsection. "Let go of me!" he yelled, kicking and hitting with all his might.

"OW!" his captor bellowed. "That was my eye! Stop kicking me!"

"Put me down!" Mighty ordered, kicking harder.

"Ow! Fine!" The man dropped him like a sack of potatoes, and he hit the ground so hard he was sure he'd bruised several bones. The armadillo looked up into the rather angry face of his captor. And he recognized

"Detective?" he asked, a little dazed.

"Who'd ya think I was? Dr. Eggman?" Vector grumped.

"Well…" Truthfully, Mighty hadn't known what to think. Except that someone was holding him over their shoulder and making the blood rush to his head.

"Trust me, you ain't important enough for Eggman to bother with," Vector told him churlishly, holding a hand over one of his eyes. He stomped off, still ticked off at being beaten by a panicky armadillo he was technically trying to help.

"Sorry…" Mighty called after him. Vector harrumphed, determined to pout a minute longer. Then he sighed.

"Don't worry about it," the crocodile said. "It's only agonizing pain and the loss of my favorite eye. I'll get over it. How are you?"

Mighty ignored the question for now, instead inspecting his surroundings. "Where are we?"

"It would seem the dimensional transporter works," Espio replied by way of explanation.

"Interesting clothes," Mighty continued, looking at the unique clothing each of them wore. He didn't dwell on it, nor wait for any explanations as to their presence. He had more pressing matters to concern him at the moment. "Um, where are we going?"

"This way," Vector explained, pointing down the road.

"Uh…ok," Mighty looked down the apparently deserted roadway before asking, "Do you even know what you're doing?"

"I'm a detective. As far as you know, I always know what I'm doing," Vector replied easily.

Mighty wasn't at all assured by Vector's use of 'as far as you know', but he didn't voice his fears as the other two seemed content to follow him. Instead he rubbed his nose absently.

"Is something wrong?" Espio asked, noticing his sudden withdrawn behavior.

"I'm not sure," Mighty admitted. "But my nose is extremely sore for some reason…"


	4. Chapter 4

**Dear Readers: Please do not ask me where I have been or what happened to my other stories in the reviews. I have explained everything on my profile page if you would please take the time to read it. Thank you for your time and patience.-StarVix**

**Chapter 4—Miss Rose, I presume?**

"**For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD.—Isaiah 55:8**

**May they sing about the ways of the LORD, for the glory of the LORD is great.  
>—Psalms138:5<strong>

**My ways are not Your ways  
>My thoughts are not Your thoughts<br>As the Heavens are higher than the Earth  
>Search me and know my heart<br>I give myself to You  
>For the Heavens are higher than the Earth<br>-**_**More Like You**_**, Lincoln Brewster**

* * *

><p>If you have ever walked through a majestic, rural countryside, one where the air is clean, the landscape untouched by the hand of mortal man, the sky clear, the rivers babbling happily and running clear, then you have seen the works of the hand of God in such an intimate, awe-inspiring manner that it cannot be put into words.<p>

And if you have ever walked through said countryside with a six-year-old, you probably didn't get to see much of it.

"Charmy, quit poking that bug and get your butt back over here, can't you see we're walking?"

"Charmy, it's a robin. You've seen fifty million robins back home, and there is nothing that makes this one the slightest bit different or more interesting then them. Get back on this path this instant!"

"Charmy, it's a leaf. Yes, I'm sure it's pretty, but we're not looking for leaves, so stop stalling and let's go!"

"Charmy! Why didn't you go _before_ we left the other dimension? …What do you _mean _you didn't have to then?"

"Charmy, it's been five minutes. I've seen you bounce on a pogo stick for fifteen hours straight without a break, so don't _tell _me you're tired!"

"Charmy, even if we did have food, you just ate twenty minutes ago…I don't _care _if you're hungry now!"

"Charmy! Stop running! Wait for us to catch up!"

"CHARMY! So help me you stop that pouting this _instant _or I'll slap you so far down you'll have to peek out of your socks to see daylight!"

…And so on and so forth. Charmy Bee was, generally, a very good kid and he did his best to mind his guardians, but he was also six-years-old and a bit…forgetful. But Vector and Espio were also very good at _making _him mind. Most of these potentially day-ruining problems were nipped in the bud. Charmy would not scream or throw a tantrum when told to stop acting up—he knew the penalty was _not _worth the effort—and instead he obediently fell back into line and walked calmly next to his friends…at least until something else caught his attention.

After all, foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child…

"OW! Charmy, did you just hit me with a _stick?"_

"_EEK!"_

…But the rod of correction will drive it far from him.

* * *

><p>Twenty minutes after they had started their walk, they reached a small clearing, a bit tired, very hungry, and each one bearing a little more wisdom as to why it was a bad idea to hit Vector with a stick.<p>

Charmy was busy rubbing his ever-so-slightly sore little bottom, but the stinging left by being swatted with Vector's bare palm was easily forgotten in his excitement when he saw a quaint little white cottage sitting smack dab in the middle of the clearing. "Lookit, guys, look!" he cheered, all of his pain and sorrow from the last few minutes forgotten, never to be brought to his remembrance again.

The knowledge that We Do Not Hit People With Sticks, however, would be firmly rooted into his mind for the rest of eternity.

"Is this the place we were supposed to go to?" Espio softly asked the Spirit, who nodded.

"**It is**_**," **_the dove confirmed.

"Well, in that case…" Vector turned to the cottage and cupped his hands over his mouth. "Hey you, in the house! We're here! Let the bells ring out and the banners wave!"

Espio rolled his eyes at Vector's antics before whispering to the Spirit, "Sorry about him. He's a real piece of work."

The Spirit chuckled. **"I love him anyway. And besides, I haven't finished working on him yet."**

* * *

><p>Amy Rose had thought she had prepared for anything the King could give her. But when she heard his messengers' voices and rushed out of the house, she realized she had been wrong.<p>

Horribly, horribly wrong.

She knew the King did not judge on outward appearances, He instead focused on the heart of men. She also knew she was not capable of conceiving His wisdom. Which was probably why she couldn't fathom why He would send a child, an obviously immature, cocky crocodile, a ever-so-slightly sheepish chameleon, and of all things, a _recanter_!

One that she recognized, as a matter of fact. Travelling with one who had denied and betrayed the King after having _known _His mercy and goodness would be bad enough. But a man who shared the face of one of her good friends…the grief had been devastating when she heard the news that her dear friend Mighty had recanted and had travelled to the Dragon's Realm, and was lost forever. Now she had to stare at his face, and watch it happen again?

As if sensing her thoughts, the Spirit looked directly at her. Although his lips did not move, she heard His words in her soul clearly. **"Do you doubt, child? I do nothing without reason, and where there is yet life, there is still hope. You have come far with Me, but you have farther still to go, and there is yet much for you to learn. For now, trust Me. Please."**

There was no anger, no disappointment. He had _known_ she would react this way upon seeing those He had chosen to accompany her, so her reaction could not disappoint Him, and His anger had been quenched thousands of years ago when the Blood of the Prince had run freely. Now there was only compassion, understanding, and love. And a sincere plea, the same plea that He has for all of His children.

Trust Me. Please.

Amy swallowed, and she trusted. He would not let her fall. "I believe You," she whispered ever so slightly. The Spirit smiled at her in delight, and Amy took a deep breath and turned to her new companions. "Hello," she said, offering the crocodile, who appeared to be the leader, her hand. "I'm Amy Rose. I believe we are supposed to journey together."

"Ya got that right, sister," the crocodile replied, taking her hand and squeezing it firmly and a touch too tightly. "Name's Vector. I'm a Detective, leader of the Chaotix Detective Agency. This is Espio, and that's Charmy. And that…" he looked over at Mighty with a strange look on his face. "That's…some guy we met."

"Uh…Mighty," the Armadillo was quick to add. He looked stunned, as if he could not fully grasp the current situation. "I'm a security guard," he supplied.

"Yeah, him," Vector confirmed.

"It's…nice to meet you," Amy said, feeling a little unsure that she was telling the whole truth. She knew she wasn't supposed to feel this way towards those the King had chosen, but she didn't know what she was supposed to do about it; she couldn't just make those feelings go away, could she?

"**Trust Me," **she heard the Spirit say again. **"Let Me help you."**

Amy swallowed again, before she fell into step behind Vector. "I have money to buy supplies at the port town we will be leaving in," she explained to them. "Shall we go?"

"Miss Amy! We're coming too!" a little cream-colored rabbit child called as she rushed out of the cottage, her mother right on her heels.

"Cream?" Amy looked puzzled, before giving Cream a disarming smile. "I'm sorry sweetie, but you can't come with me this time."

"Oh, yes she can," her mother contradicted, taking a moment to straighten her skirts. "The King has told me to come with you. And Cream must come with me."

Amy's jaw dropped open in shock. "But…but this is a dangerous journey, Vanilla. It's no place for a child! You and Cream are safe here; why would a mother take such a dangerous journey with her child?" Amy understood risking her own life for her King, but she could not fathom risking someone else's.

Vanilla gave Amy a shrewd look as she took her daughter's hand and stepped into line with the rest of the travelers. "Sometimes, saying yes to the King means saying no to having a safe place to raise a child," she said softly. "Nobody can have the King for nothing. He will always cost us something, or He is worth nothing to us."

* * *

><p>Knuckles felt desperate.<p>

It was the only way to describe his situation. He knew that every minute he left his post his emerald was vulnerable. The last time his emerald was stolen by that thief, Scourge, Knuckles had committed acts that had stained him in ways that could not be cleansed with soap and water. Even twelve years after the event, he still felt the tarnish on his very soul, a guilt that he was sure could not be cleansed, a sin that he thought for sure was the reason for his dreams. A man in white…in the dreams the man knew how to save him. He knew the solution to cleanse the guilt from his soul. But Knuckles couldn't _find _him!

Instead of convincing him the dream was just a dream, the absence of the man only seemed to increase Knuckles' desperation. He could _feel _his guilt crushing him. He had to find someone, _anyone _dressed in white, find someone who could help him to _live _with himself...

Knuckles was seriously considering stabbing the pointed, knife-like knuckle gloves he wore into his brain to make the pain and the guilt _stop_ when he heard voices coming up a nearby road. The echidna's eyes widened, remembering what manner of people lived here on the mainland—thieves like Scourge and monsters like Mephiles, and…and who _knows _what horrors were coming his way, coming to increase the blood on his hands, the stains on his soul…Knuckles darted into a nearby bush so he wouldn't be spotted, and waited.

After what felt to be an impossible amount of time, a man appeared on the road, coming up over a hill. Knuckles' breath caught in his throat.

The man was dressed in white.

He wasn't alone, Knuckles knew that from the sounds of voices from the other side of the hill. But he _had _outpaced his companions, and they were hollering at him to slow down and wait, while he was retorting that they were all a bunch of old ladies with the stamina of a garden slug. Either way, he was starting to slow, and his companions would surely catch up with him soon.

Knuckles didn't think that the man would help him if he had allies to back him up; no one on the main land was like _that, _they were thieves and murderers and he had to get the man away from his allies and under Knuckles' control so that he could get the answers he needed. He had to act fast.

He hardly stopped to think about what he was doing as he grabbed a nearby rock and rushed the white-clothed man with it. The man barely had time to gawk at him before Knuckles knocked him out and dragged him off the road, hiding him safely in the bushes with him just in time, as the first of the man's companions topped the hill not a moment afterwards.

This man looked around, before scowling and shaking his head. "I told him to wait. Why does he have to be so idiotic?" he muttered, before he and the rest of the group travelling with him hurried off, apparently trying to catch up with the man Knuckles had captured.

Knuckles waited until they were both out of eyesight and hearing distance before deciding to do something about his captive. He tied the man up with some thick, sturdy vines that were growing nearby, and decided the man was definitely at his mercy. Please with this fact, Knuckles sat down, and waited.

* * *

><p>Vector woke with a splitting headache, the kind he hadn't felt in years. At first, he panicked a little about what that might mean and desperately tried to remember where he had been last night. But then he realized that despite his headache, he didn't have any other symptoms of a hangover, and also that he could remember in vivid detail everything that had happened up until he lost consciousness, and alcohol and decidedly <em>not <em>been part of the events of the past twenty-four hours, so he calmed down some. And then he realized he was tied up, and all that calmness went out the window.

"Hey, what the…" this was as far as his protesting got before a very wild and half-crazed looking red echidna was shoving the business end of his Knuxgloves at his throat.

"You," Knuckles growled. "Tell me the secret, now!"

"What are you talking about?" Vector, being Vector, quickly got over the fact that he was tied up and being threatened with bodily harm, and was becoming annoyed with Knuckles' idiotic babbling. He'd always known that guy wasn't right in the head, but Espio told him he was just a paranoid jerk. Well, take that, Ninja-boy! Tonight he would dine on sweet vindication!

"You will tell me, or I'll _make _you tell me," Knuckles growled at him.

A part of Vector wanted to tell Knuckles exactly what he thought of him but something held him back. Perhaps it was his better nature, or his common sense. But I think it was the Holy Spirit, who was frantically shaking his head _no_, that made Vector hold his tongue. Especially since Vector's better nature and common sense was the part of him that wanted to chew Knuckles out.

The echidna looked desperate enough to actually _do _something to him, and the knowledge suddenly sprang on Vector that he wasn't in a very good position. He swallowed, as his throat felt very dry all of a sudden, and tried to smile. "So uh…what are we talking about again?"

"Tell me how to escape the abyss," Knuckles practically begged him.

"Uh…huh…" Vector vaguely wondered if they had Happy Padded Party Rooms in this dimension.

Luckily the Spirit came to his rescue. Well, sort of.

"_**Tell him what he wants to know." **_The words were not spoken aloud, but were rather resonating through his soul.

'_What_?' Vector thought.

"_**Open your mouth and tell him your story. All of it."**_

Vector the Crocodile could charge through an entire battalion of Eggman's most dangerous battle droids and never blink. He could hunt down and arrest the most deadly criminals on the planet and never flinch. But the idea of opening his mouth and telling someone he'd technically known his entire life, yet was a complete stranger to him, his life story?

'_You've got to be joking!'_

"_**Are you telling Me no? I did not ask for your excuses; I told you to open your mouth. Trust Me."**_

Vector took a deep breath, and tried to still his heart so his audience could hear something besides _thump, thump, thump_ while he was talking. Then he did the most difficult thing he had ever done.

He opened his mouth and obeyed his God.


	5. Chapter 5

**If you have no intention of trying to contradict or prove my beliefs and doctrines as Satanic and unscriptural, you may skip the author's note. If you **_**do**_**find you**__**have an issue with my beliefs, please read the following:**

**The rule of the website and of not being blocked from my stories is: the review section is there for you to review **_**the story.**_** If you have a critique or a compliment about how the story is written or are pointing out spelling or grammatical errors, then go ahead. BUT…If you have an issue with my theology, then PM me about it. DO NOT post it on the review board. IF you can provide me with Scripture that **_**in context **_**proves you right and me wrong, I will publically apologize in the next chapter for spreading false doctrines around and rewrite my storyline to convey the truth. BUT again…if you just rant and rave about how 'you don't think that's right' and offer no scriptural proof, your argument is automatically invalid to me. **

**This might seem weird that I'm explaining this, but I'm about to get into some deep theological stuff and I distinctly remember that someone once did a long rant in my reviews section in I Still Believe about 'why it's a sin against God that I don't use King James Bible for all my verses.' And then they copied and pasted the thing **_**twice**_** in the same review. That's right, this person didn't even bother to look this up for themselves, just copied and pasted from the net. Little to no scripture was used in this rant, and what was used was grievously out of context, OR COMPLETELY IRRELIVANT TO THE IDEA THAT KING JAMES IS THE ONLY NON EVIL VERSION OF THE BIBLE. Seriously, the guy posted so many 'facts' of how the NIV changes the Scripture and then never showed me any of the verses where it does so, except two: NIV made the SATANIC mistake of not putting Lucifer's actual name in the text in Isaiah…oh, the horror…And in Acts 17 the word 'superstitious' becomes 'religious' which, if you READ THE CHAPTER, both words make sense in the context and RELIGIOUS makes more sense, it's a false religion they've got going on, but they are religious people. He's not describing Christian doctrine, he's telling this group with a bunch of idols that they are obviously a superstitious—or a religious—people and explaining he knows a God that's even better than the gods they got. Listen, I don't mind if you think NIV is bad or wrong. But please…if you're going to convince someone else, **_**please **_**do a better job of it than that. More Scripture, more studying for yourself, less copy and paste. They even have websites that help you find scriptures nowadays by imputing keywords and everything, so you have NO EXCUSE for not studying your own doctrines before you try to teach them.**

**If you ignore me and rant in reviews anyway, I will block you. **

**All scriptures will be in **_**context**_**. Remember that. For example, 'Judas went out and hanged himself.' Is written in the Bible. "Go and do likewise." Is also written in the Bible. Putting them together is taking the scripture out of context. These verses are talking about **_**completely different things and situations.**_** Also, saying, 'Acts 17 in NIV replaced superstitious with religious' sounds bad until you read the chapter and the verse in context, then you realize this is a nonissue. Whether you change your mind or not on your position: If I got you to blow the dust off your Bible and study it, I have accomplished my goal. **

**Please respect my decision. I don't want reviews that are actually nothing but a five minute rant on 'Why God Really Doesn't Do Miracles Today' or 'I can live however I want because I have eternal security' in my review board. Just PM me. I promise I will read and study it until I know the truth. If you want I will put my findings at the beginning of the next chapter, just specify that in your PM, and you can read what I have found out and then you can know the truth too. But remember if I don't find SCRIPTURAL proof IN CONTEXT to support your belief, I will not change my storyline. If you don't like it, find some scriptures that are contextually correct that support your belief and PM them to me. I'll check them.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5—The Sins of the Father…<strong>

**Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.—Matthew 23:15**

**He said to His disciples, "It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble."—Luke 17:2**

**If judgment looms under every steeple  
>If lofty glances from lofty people<br>Can't see past her scarlet letter  
>And we never even met her<br>**_**Does Anybody Hear Her?—**_**Casting Crowns**

When Vector was six, his dad lost his job.

Prior to this, his dad had been a great guy. He was kind, thoughtful, took his family to church every Sunday, played ball in the front yard with Vector—the stereotypical perfect dad and husband, like Ward Cleaver on _Leave it to Beaver_, or Paul Martin on _Lassie_. Vector had been happy—from what little he could remember of those days, his life had been perfect.

And then his Pop lost his job.

It hadn't even been the man's fault; or the result of downsizing. No, Brandon Crocodile's only crime was trusting his friend and co-worker, Jeff Moon. Moon had embezzled thousands of dollars from the company they worked for, and used his position as Brandon's buddy to plant false information on his hard drive, so he'd get the cash and Brandon got the rap.

Brandon was convicted of a crime he didn't commit, was promptly fired from his job, and spent nine months in jail. When he got out, he was a changed man. He could not find a job because of the economy, and because no one was going to risk hiring a convicted felon. He had spent nine months in jail hating his so-called 'friend' for his betrayal and growing bitter and hard because of the injustice that was done to him. He could no longer trust anyone, hold down a job, or keep his commitments.

But boy, the man could drink.

His father was a completely changed man when he got out of jail; and it was _not _a change for the better. But once he got ahold of a bottle, his personality bottomed out and he was the sorriest individual to ever grace God's green earth. And yes, Vector was including people like Hannibal Lector, Jack the Ripper, and the Wicked Witch of the West in this assessment. There was nobody, nobody else who has ever walked the face of this earth who was more pathetic, cold-hearted, cruel, and just plain evil like Brandon G. Crocodile.

It was a gradual change, of course. At the beginning he was still trying to be a good man. He would do his best to find a job, keep commitments, come into church whenever he wasn't too tired; be there for his kid and wife. He'd drink every now and again to relieve the stress, that's all. He'd cry and whine when he'd get a hold of the bottle, and he'd verbally abuse Vector's mom every now and again when he was completely soused. Nothing anybody would condemn him for; after all, after what had happened, didn't he have a right to be a little messed up?

At first, Vector would pray that God would help his dad and that their family would go back to how it used to be, and that God would change everything for the better. That is, until he made the mistake of telling his Sunday School teacher about his prayers.

Vector would remember the crotchety old crow until the day he died. Well, _technically, _she was a falcon, but she definitely had crowish tendencies. To this day he could have accurately described her appearance to a sketch artist, right down to the hair-covered mole that took up, like, half of her lower jaw. He could describe how she had a look on her face that made him think she was sucking lemons in his childhood, and that look in her eyes that always made him feel as if she saw him as something nasty and dirty. He could remember how he was positive she was fifteen years older than God and therefore was an accurate witness at explaining how He did things.

And he would never, ever forget how she had oh so 'kindly' explained to him that God just didn't answer prayer anymore; since because we have the Bible and so many human advancements in medical science, we didn't need his miracles. God didn't help people miraculously now, she explained, so don't get your hopes up.

It had been a death blow to Vector's young faith to hear her say that. God didn't use miracles or help people now? But if He didn't answer prayer, then why did people waste their time praying to Him?

When he'd asked her that, she had gotten angry at him and told him not to test God. Vector had been very hurt and confused. He had thought it was a legitimate question. Why didn't God care about him and his family? Everyone said He was powerful enough to help them, but He wouldn't because…why? Because He just didn't do that anymore? Why not? Didn't He want to help? Was Vector that worthless to Him?

Vector didn't know why adults would waste time talking to someone who had already said He was going to ignore them, but he was smarter than that. Vector never prayed again after that, unless his Momma was watching, of course. She loved God for some reason the little boy could never properly explain, and he didn't want to have to tell her that God didn't care about her or her problems, because it hurt to find that out, and he never wanted his Momma to feel that hurt. So he pretended that God cared for her so she would be happy.

* * *

><p>When he was seven, Brandon was verbally abusive to both him and his Momma on a daily basis, and he was threatening physical violence as well. He never actually hit Momma—yet—but Vector was sure it was only a matter of time. His Pop was starting to genuinely frighten him, so he always found excuses to be out of the house or in his room whenever the old man was home. He never saw his dad sober, now.<p>

He hated him.

He never said that out loud, of course. It would upset his Momma; she said hate was a nasty word. But it didn't change the fact that Vector wished his father would die and leave him and his Momma alone.

Melody Crocodile was getting increasingly alarmed at Brandon's behavior; so she sought council from her pastor. He told her that the Bible said that women should obey their husbands; and heavily implied that if she was a better wife Brandon wouldn't be treating her like this. Feeling guilty and ashamed at her lack of moral, Christian behavior, Melody repented and vowed to do better, believing that if she became a better wife, her life would get better.

But the truth was, the problem was not Melody, and never had been. While heaping guilt upon her for imaginary sins, nobody ever bothered to correct or confront her husband's behavior, and the situation at her home got steadily worse and worse.

* * *

><p>When Vector was eight, Brandon hit his mother in the face. Vector was terrified of the man, but he was a big boy, almost nine years old, and he had to be the man of the family since his Pop sure wasn't good for nothing. And the man of the family had to protect his Momma.<p>

Vector has vague memories of screaming, calling his Pop a word that he knew Momma would be disappointed to hear him say, but he was too angry to care about that. He told the man to get away from his mother. If he thinks hard, he can admit he has a blurry image of his father raising his fist towards him…

The next thing he remembers is waking up in the hospital, his mother sobbing next to him, telling him that Pop is in jail and they were leaving him for good. She's already talked to a lawyer and was preparing to finalize the divorce papers. Vector was lucky to be alive; the man almost beat him to death. Momma had rushed to the neighbor's house as soon as Pop started in on him and the man there had fought Pop off while his wife called the cops. But even though it had been a short beating, it had been a brutal one; and when Vector had collapsed from that man's blows his head had hit the edge of the family's coffee table with enough force that it was a miracle his head hadn't caved in. He'd been in a coma for nearly a year.

He was in the hospital for longer than any child feels he has a right to be there, but finally he gets out just in time to help Momma take the last of their boxes to their new house, after she has signed the divorce papers and Pop is officially out of their lives forever. It's in another state and everything, and he's excited to be leaving Pop behind. Everything is going to be better now, he knows it. A part of him wonders if the teacher was wrong and somehow God helped them get away from Pop like this.

And then his Momma goes to their church to inform the pastor of their move and the man sets them straight. He glares at Momma and tells her that divorce is a sin against God; and she has no place in the church now. God doesn't want her anymore.

He didn't say God didn't want her in so many words, but why else would she not be allowed to hang out with 'good Christian people?' That is what Vector hears, and it is the last straw for him. God dared to say his Momma wasn't good enough for Him? For leaving a man who belittled, tormented, and hit her and literally almost murdered her son? Momma _loved _God and tried her best to live for Him! God was as bad as Pop, claiming he loved Momma and then abandoning her like this!

Momma was devastated, but the divorce had been finalized and there was no turning back now. They moved to a new state, and cut ties with their past. It was a fresh start, but the pastor's words had tainted it. Momma never went to church again. She felt she didn't deserve to go because she'd gotten a divorce.

And Vector remembered how much she had loved God and hated Him because of it.

* * *

><p><em>In Heaven, God grieved. <em>

_He saw a woman who claimed to know Him, who studied His word and knew what it said, crush a little boy and tell him that He did not care and would not hear His prayers. Without the boy's belief in Him, He was unable to change his situation for the better. He watched as the child's soul shattered through lack of faith. And then he watched that woman go home and gossip about and belittle others, ruining the faith of many more by her actions and words. _

_He saw a Pastor heap guilt and condemnation on a woman He claimed as innocent, and then tell her she had no part of Him, causing her to backslide from Him. Then he watched that man go into his office and nonchalantly continue his affair with his secretary while his wife idly wondered when he would come home as she read a novel that glorified sex instead of God. _

_He saw an entire congregation that mocked and despised Brandon Crocodile instead of showing him the love of God that he had so desperately needed and helping him when he needed help. The entire family could have been saved had even one of those people who claimed they were of God had proven their words with their actions._

_Nothing has changed in the church since the days of the Pharisees. God still looks down on the actions of people who claim they serve Him and cries out, "Woe to you, you teachers of the law and Pharisees! You shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people's faces. You yourselves will not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to."_

_And Jesus weeps as people who honor Him with their lips spit upon Him and refuse to love Him, because they love sin more. And then they deny others the right to love Him because they claim these sinful people who He loves and died for are not worthy of His love. They refuse to see the truth._

_And the truth is this: Unless they repent of the evil they harbor in their hearts, turn from their wicked ways and humble themselves before God, then one day God will look them in the eye and say, "Depart from Me. I never knew you."_

* * *

><p>There have been many days in his life where Espio has wanted to take his katana and shove it up his boss' rear end so far he could see the tip of it come out of the idiot's mouth.<p>

A long time ago, before he had come to God, he used to fantasize about this in order to make himself feel better. All he had to do, he'd muse, is have a blood pressure test taken before hand to present as evidence at his trial. It was a case of self-defense, he'd tell them. I had to get rid of him before he could get rid of me.

He is still positive that there is not a court on this planet that would convict him.

But everything is different now, and now he serves a God that tells him not to harbor murder in his heart. Even contemplating the murder of another is wrong, whether you actually do it or not. Espio has spent more than one night repenting of his murderous heart and submitting to God, letting Him change it and give him a new, non-murderous, heart.

Whatever else that can be said about Vector T. Crocodile, he sure has a way of making Espio draw closer to God.

So Espio's stress levels are rising as he is once again suddenly and without warning thrust into a position of responsibility and leadership that he neither desires nor feels prepared to handle. And then he realizes that instead of contemplating new and unique ways to kill his boss for abandoning his post—again—and putting him in this position—_again—_the only thought on his mind is a sing-songy tune that happens to be the first Christian song he had ever bothered to listen to:

_Praise God from whom all blessing flow  
>Praise Him all creatures here below<br>Praise Him all you heavenly hosts  
>Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost<em>

And the thought comes to his mind that if his heart could praise God instead of curse Vector in a situation as unacceptable as this one, then Espio had proof that God _was _preforming a miracle in his life.

And even though the situation hadn't changed, Espio's stress levels started to drop and he felt happy as he gathered wood for their fire. Yes, that's right; it was now dark and they were making camp, and Vector still was nowhere to be found. But Espio wasn't worried; this was actually par for the course for Vector. Ever since the chameleon had started working for the croc, he had known that only a moron would ever consider the man even remotely responsible.

Even though Espio had to admit, Vector was getting better about it. Sort of. Not really. But at least he wasn't out spending all their cash on booze anymore.

Espio shook his head and massaged his temples, trying to ward off a stress headache that hadn't quite formed yet. He started to pray for peace in his circumstances until a familiar presence surrounded him. The chameleon opened his eyes to see the Spirit was perched upon his lap.

"**Thank you for inviting Me here, Espio." **The Spirit informed him gently. **"What is troubling you?"**

He already knew; but He wanted Espio to voice his thoughts, so that He could reveal the true problem.

"What's _always _troubling me?" Espio blurted out. "Vector's so…impulsive and absentminded and reckless—this is _important_, and he's off doing whatever leaving me to deal with the fallout, _again_, and I wish You'd hurry up and…change him!"

"**Are you upset about a sin Vector has committed?" **the Spirit interrupted him.

"I…what?"

"**Do I call recklessness a sin in My Word? Or impulsiveness? Or absentmindedness?"**

"Well…no. But it's so annoying! Can't You do something about it?"

"**I don't want to."**

The bluntness with which the Spirit told him this made Espio's jaw drop in shock. "What?"

"**I created Vector to be impulsive, so he could follow My prompting without hesitating to figure out if it is 'compatible' with his plans. I created Vector to be reckless, so he could chase after Me with reckless abandonment, without caring for anything else. I created Vector to be absentminded, to help him forget things that were distracting him from Me."**

"Wow." It was the only word the ninja could think of to say. Espio had never even considered Vector's flaws from that perspective.

"**Just because you have a problem with the way Vector is, doesn't mean that I want him to change. I made him this way for a reason. And he is not the one who needs to repent and change right now. He is exactly where I want him to be, doing exactly what I want him to do. But you are here grumbling and complaining about it."**

Espio gasped and jerked back as if he had been struck. He looked at the Spirit with wide, hurt eyes. "I don't understand."

"**Oh, Espio," **The stern voice the Spirit had been using was dropped, and replaced with a gentle, loving one as He moved closer to Espio, for all intents and purposes cuddling and holding him. **"I love you so much. Perhaps this will help you understand. Do you know why I became upset with the Children of Israel when they were travelling through the wilderness?"**

"Because they complained, and grumbled," Espio replied.

"**Did you know they did not start grumbling and complaining until they had been in the desert for three days without food or drink, and were on the verge of death, and mothers were watching their children and babies suffer, and were facing the possibility of watching them die?"**

Espio gawked at Him. "Are…and You were _mad _that they complained?"

"**They grumbled against Me. The grumbled against Moses. It was not Moses' fault they had no food or water. It was not My fault. It was **_**nobody's **_**fault. It is one thing to speak out against sin, but there is never a time where it is alright to complain about your circumstances. I was leading them to a place where I would give them water. I was preparing Manna to fall from heaven, and flocks of quail to sustain them. If they had just trusted Me, I still would have taken care of them."**

"Why do You hate complaining and grumbling so much?"

"**You of all people should know, Espio. You can't stand it when Charmy whines and complains for five minutes. I have to listen to over six billion people who grumble and complain **_**all day, every day**_**."**

Espio paled at the thought. "How are you patient enough not to wipe us all off the face of the earth?"

The Spirit laughed and nuzzled Espio's arm. **"That is a lesson for another day. You aren't ready for it, just yet. Just trust Me for a little longer. Oh, and about your prayers for Charmy? Hyperactivity isn't a sin either."**

Espio's shoulders slumped. But he nodded. "I understand."


	6. Chapter 6

**I have confirmed with myself that this is the last book in this series; this trilogy wraps the storyline up nicely, I think. However, I have come up with a follow up storyline that I am thinking will also be a trilogy for when this story is done. If you are interested in what I have in mind, I have a short preview of it after the chapter is done. I've decided to move my updates from Sunday—which are getting very hectic for me—to Saturday, which is my 'lay around and be lazy' day. So instead of updating on Sunday afternoons, from now on I will update on Saturday afternoons.**

**Chapter 6—The Sins of the Son…**

**He did what the LORD considered evil, living as his father did…-1 Kings 15:** **28 (GOD'S WORD translation)**

**The one who sins is the one who will die. The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child. The righteousness of the righteous will be credited to them, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against them.—Ezekiel 18:****2O**

**And this is how it feels when I ignore the words You spoke to me  
>And this is where I lose myself when I keep running away from You<br>And this is who I am when I don't know myself anymore  
>And this is what I choose when it's all left up to me<strong>

_**Breathe Into Me**_—**Red **

Knuckles was horrified at what Vector had told him. He had known people on the mainland were evil, but for a father to do such a thing to his own child… "I'm…sorry." It's so horribly inadequate, but it is the only thing he can think of to say. He finds himself wishing he had been there to protect Vector and his mother, but such wishing was futile, for it had not happened and the past could not change. But still…"Such a thing should never happen to an innocent child."

Vector—when had Knuckles stopped thinking of him as a threat?—flushed purple and looked to the ground. "Innocent huh? Well…I wasn't ever innocent. Just had to wait a few more years to figure that out, is all."

* * *

><p>Vector was fifteen when he tasted his first beer. The guy who handed it to him was the school's biggest druggie, but in Vector's eyes, he was a hero, tough and invincible. He wanted to impress him more than anything in the world. He told Vector he'd swiped the bottle from his dad's alcohol cabinet and dared him to chug the whole thing down without stopping.<p>

Vector downed the entire bottle in two minutes.

He is told by the guys he mistakenly calls 'friends' in his school days that he spent the rest of the afternoon laying under the school's bleachers, in a drunken daze. He honestly doesn't remember that. He does remember spending the next day hunched over the toilet, however, convincing his Momma he caught the flu at school so she won't suspect he's been drinking.

He also remembers the bliss and numbness he felt while under the influence. It is the first time in his life he can actually remember feeling something other than hurt, anger, sorrow, bitterness, and hatred. It is the most amazing feeling in the world.

He is willing to do almost anything to feel it again.

* * *

><p>When he is twenty-two, he has opened his own detective agency. He is a good private eye; although he is disappointed that in reality, being a detective is more about paper work than it is about loose women willing to do anything for his help. He gets stone drunk every weekend and drinks a couple beers to keep the edge off each night, but he is not an alcoholic.<p>

Seriously. He is not addicted to alcohol. He can quit whenever he wants, he just doesn't want to stop, that is all. And it does not interfere with his life in any way. He is in control, and he does not have a problem.

His employee, Espio, would disagree with him. But Espio doesn't have room to talk. Vector has seen enough of the man's skills and heard enough vague talk to deduce that the man was someone's hitman back in Japan, until he crossed someone he shouldn't have, or he at least had some other job of questionable legality that involved murder over there and he knocked off the wrong guy. He doesn't quit working for Vector because Vector's the only one who is willing to hire him.

Vector really doesn't care whether or not Espio was part of the Japanese Mafia or whatever they call the criminal underworld over there. He has a green card, he is good at his job, and he works for cheap. That's all that matters.

All in all, Vector thought his life was perfect until some deadbeat leaves a baby on his doorstep.

There wasn't even a basket, or a note. It wasn't even his _doorstep_, more like the gutter right outside his detective agency. A token, pathetic attempt to clean the baby has taken place, but for all intents and purposes, his Ma had cut the umbilical cord and threw him in the nearest gutter she could find. And that gutter happened to be his gutter.

"What are we gonna do with a brat?" he whines to his employee, who cocks his head to the side like he can't figure out what the problem is.

"Feed it?" he suggests.

It's late, and the social service's office are closed. Vector's not enough of a jerk to just leave a newborn sobbing in the gutter, so he picks up the kid and brings it in. A quick glance confirms it to be male—and he cleans the kid up and they give him his first meal, some 2% milk that Espio pops in the microwave for a few seconds that they put in a clean glove from a box. They normally use them for forensics work, but tonight they are being creative. It probably isn't that healthy for the kid, but it's all they've got and it's only for tonight. After he's eaten, they wrap him in one of Vector's old shirts because it's the only thing they've got that would work for clothes or a blanket for the kid, and empty out one of their shelf drawers and lay it on the floor, though they pad it with some of Espio's softest shirts since they don't have any extra sheets. That is the kid's first bed.

Vector watches as the child goes to sleep, happy and content with a full tummy, deems himself a pretty good guy to take care of some kid off the street like this, and gets himself some beer to reward his good deed for the day.

The next day they are too busy to call social services, but they do manage to grab some baby formula, diapers, and some clothes.

The day after that they barely have enough time to grab some baby blankets and a couple of baby toys. You know, to keep the kid entertained when they were busy and stuff. And also some more diapers and formula.

The day after that Vector marvels at how busy their business has become all of a sudden while he tries to set up a new baby crib, while Espio learns about the wonders of baby powder from his new _Babysitting for Dummies_ book they got on sale while they bought more diapers and formula.

The next day Espio and Vector both agreed that it was stupid to call the child 'the kid' while he was hanging out with them and started arguing over baby names.

"I ain't namin' no kid Yoshi!" Vector yelled at his employee. Hey, he was the boss and it was his building, so he felt he should get final say.

"Yoshi is a fine, upstanding name. Many noble men were called Yoshi in Japan." Espio does not share Vector's conclusion to his deductive reasoning.

"Oh yeah? We ain't in Japan, we're in the States. And in the States, 'Yoshi' is a retarded green dragon thing with a stupid long tongue that a big fat guy uses as a horse. You name the kid Yoshi and you might as well be tattooing, 'Mock Me, I'm A Nerd' on his face when you send him to school."

"It's better than your idea. 'Hubert.' Who names a kid Hubert?"

"Hubert's a nice name!"

"You were _drunk _when you thought of it!"

"Hey, I ain't no drunk! Why don't we name the brat something we both think is stupid, like 'Charming' and be done with it?'

"Well, why don't we?"

"It's fine with me!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

And thus, they christened the child Charming Yoshi Hubert Bee, just to spite each other. Charmy grew up making the best of it.

A week later Vector finally got around to getting ahold of social services. When he did, he also asked what it would take for him to be declared the child's legal guardian. He had a steady job, income, a place to stay that the workers agreed was suitable for children, and he wanted the kid. Sure, he drank a little every now and again, but nowadays, who didn't?

It was the most frustrating bunch of paperwork and red tape that Vector had ever had to wade through, but when Charmy was five, Vector met the kid's first teacher and proudly introduced himself as Charmy's Pop.

* * *

><p>Two months after Charmy started kindergarten, the detective agency's business dried up. Vector dealt with the problem by getting drunk more often and spending most of their savings to do it. Espio would glare at him whenever he came in the door, and Charmy was often too busy to hang out with him for reason Vector didn't bother to understand. Sometimes he'd see the worry and uncertainty in Charmy's eyes whenever he came in, and it reminded him a lot of how he felt when his Pop came home back when the man started to drink heavily. He hated the implications, so he drank more in order to forget them.<p>

He was not a low-down, dirty, rotten drunkard like his Pop was. He was better than that.

One night the demons of his past were tormenting him more than usual, so he drank more than he usually did. It was a miracle he'd made it home without an accident, but somehow, he did.

Espio and Charmy were busy with…something, he can't remember what…and didn't hear him come it. It wouldn't have been the first time he was so drunk he stayed out all night, so they had long stopped waiting to see if he'd come back or not. Charmy was chattering about something or another, and all of a sudden, it dawned on Vector how annoying his voice was. The little brat wouldn't. Shut. Up.

He didn't realize he was screaming at Charmy and striking the child until he found himself flat on his back with Espio's katana blade at his throat, and then suddenly he felt very sober, indeed.

Espio's eyes were like ice, hard and unforgiving. "I have put up with the fact that you have been using the money that should go to my paycheck to get drunk because you gave me room and board for free. I have put up with the verbal abuse, and your threats. But if you _ever _strike that child in a drunken rage again, I _will _kill you, take him, and flee where no one will ever find us."

Half of Espio's threat was lost when he realized, really realized….

_He had gotten drunk and hit Charmy._

It was like someone poured ice water on his head. He pushed Espio's blade away, not bothering to flinch as it cut into his palm, and looked at the kid desperately, trying to prove that it wasn't true.

Instead, he saw Charmy sobbing in terror and looking at him in fear, holding his cheek. A large, purplish bruise was already forming, too large for his little hand to cover.

Vector felt violently ill and rushed to the bathroom. He barely had the presence of mind to lock the door before he was on his knees, heaving his guts into the toilet. Tears rolled down his cheeks as he vomited until he no longer had anything left to vomit; and even then he continued to dry heave.

But finally, he calmed enough to sit up and look at the mirror, taking a long, hard glance at his reflection. He saluted himself.

"Hi, Pop," he whispered. "I always figured you'd catch up ta me someday."

* * *

><p>"You became what you hated the most," Knuckles whispered, looking horrified.<p>

Vector nodded. "Yeah," he said softly. "It was the worst night of my life. I realized I was just like my old man—a lousy, good for nothing, abusive drunk. I was…I was desperate. I remember deciding that I needed to be a man and protect my kid—I had to get rid of the problem."

"What did you do?"

"I took myself to the nearest bridge and got ready to jump."

* * *

><p>It was a dark night, cloudy and overcast, though there was no rain. The air was freezing cold, and a fog covered the ground.<p>

'_A perfect night to die,'_ Vector thought morbidly as he gazed down at the deceptively calm water below him. It was black, and cold, and the perfect medium to get rid of a pathetic, worthless bum like himself. He'd set everything up. Back at the house, he had a will written up, giving Espio his business and claiming him to be Charmy's guardian. The two of them would get along fine without him.

He was a lot of things, but at least he was decent enough to get out of the way. He was better than his Pop in that way, at least. It was a very cold consolation.

It would be so easy. He was right on the edge. All he had to do was lean forward just a little..

"_Sacre bleu!"_

The shocked words startle him so much he very nearly falls then, but he instinctively grabs a cable and steadies himself. He takes a deep breath and resumes gazing at the water. He decides he did the right thing by saving himself.

When he dies, it will not be because of an accident.

He hears the sound of footsteps behind him, and then the same voice calls to him, gently, softly, as if afraid that if it spoke too loudly he'd jump. "Monsieur, what are yoo doing on ze bridge?"

The absurdity of the question draws a harsh laugh out of Vector's lips. "What's it look like?" he asked bitterly. "I'm killin' myself."

"Why would yoo want to do somezink like zat?" the voice asks gently.

"Gotta be done," Vector replies, desperately trying to get the voice to understand. Or maybe he was trying to talk himself into actually going through with it. He didn't know anymore. "I'm a mess. I'm good for nothing, just a bum drunk, and I'm a threat to my kid. It's gotta be done. Things have to change."

"If zat is ze case, zen things must change indeed," the man—Vector decides the voice is a man's voice—agrees. "But zis is not the way."

"Ain't got no other way."

"I know one."

Surprised at the matter of fact tone, Vector turns his gaze from the icy grave he was contemplating and looks at the speaker for the first time. He is a blonde-haired coyote, looks around middle age, and dressed nicely—much too nicely to have any business being on this side of town. His nostrils flare, the coyote's sensitive nose reacting to the stench of cheap beer and vomit that cover Vector's person, but he shows no signs of disgust.

Only compassion.

It is the compassion in his gaze, a look that Vector has never seen directed towards him, that startles him into really listening. "Is that right?"

The man nods and offers Vector his hand. "Come down from there," the man requests. Vector can either jump and end his life, or risk believing that this man is telling him the truth, and live. Perhaps the man sees his indecision, so he adds a single word to his sentence.

"Please."

No one has ever asked Vector anything nicely. Especially not since he started to drink and carouse. This word breaks through the barriers around his heart, and Vector hesitantly takes the man's hand and lets him lead him away from the edge of the bridge.

In the spirit realm, God Almighty snatches hold of Vector's soul that night, and all of heaven throws a party because of the excitement and happiness this one soul gives to the Lord.

* * *

><p>Knuckles looked contemplative, thoughtfully chewing his lower lip as he gazed into the distance. Vector let him have his silence. He felt like he needed to regroup, as well. Telling someone your life's story took a lot more out of you than you'd think it would.<p>

After a few minutes—hours?—Knuckles finally spoke again. "And after giving yourself to this…God…of yours…things got better?"

Vector thought back to those first days of his tentative walk with the Lord and laughed. "Well, no. Those were the worst days of my life."

The brutal honesty of his statement shocks Knuckles to his core. "I thought you came to your God so he would change you."

"I did, and he has. But God ain't no Fairy Godfather who waves a magic wand and makes all yer troubles disappear. I was a drunken bum when I came ta God, and that didn't change the minute I gave myself to him. Ain't saying it ain't possible, I heard plenty of guys who lost their addictions just like that, but me…" Vector shrugged. "God didn't promise a rosy, perfect life. He did promise he'd stick with me as long as I would stick with him, and he promised that no matter what, he'd help me obey him. I can do anything he wants me to do, cause he gives me the strength to do it."

"What did he want you to do?"

"Obviously, he wanted me to surrender control of my life to him. But I couldn't do that until I stopped surrendering control of my life to a bottle. A couple days after I got saved, I waltzed into my office and confronted Espio with nuthin' in my hands but a Bible and a rope…" Vector's eyes grew dark with remembrance and he shuddered. That…probably hadn't been the best way he could have handled his alcohol addiction, but he had believed if he just quit cold turkey he'd get over whatever withdrawal symptoms he might have quickly. He'd originally assumed the rope was just going to be used during the night so that he wouldn't be able to give in to temptation when Espio couldn't watch him. That's right, he not only dumped out any alcohol stashes he had in his home, but he had Espio tie him to his bed so he couldn't go get more. It was only later he realized it had an added bonus of keeping him from inadvertently hitting himself as his body convulsed with withdrawal symptoms as the fluffy pink unicorn above his head kept asking him if he had any bubblegum. He also believes that the impromptu trip to the emergency room was the one and only time Espio wasn't angry his paycheck ended up being used by his boss because of his alcohol problem.

Vector hadn't even had a clue how severely he had been addicted to alcohol.

Knuckles didn't ask for the story behind Vector's remark, which was a good thing because Vector wasn't sure he could tell it just yet without breaking down and sobbing, so another long silence fell over the two of them.

Once again, Knuckles broke the silence, this time by stating matter-of-factly, "I want to know more."

"Uh-huh." Helping out Knuckles' spiritual life was all fine and dandy, but Vector's arms and legs were losing blood circulation because of the stupid ropes he was _still _tied up in. "Listen, I've got to catch up with my buddies. Why don't you untie me and we can chat on the road? Espio always loves unforeseen complications—I mean, surprise company." Actually, Espio didn't like it when Vector brought surprise guests along _at all_, but that was what made them fun.

Vector admitted he probably needed to repent of whatever it was that made it fun to torment Espio the way he did sometimes. At least, the times he did it on purpose. It was entirely too easy to upset Espio. Once, Espio complained that it was wrong of Vector to drag a six-year-old on dangerous assignments as they hunted down murderers and stuff. Vector admitted that he had a point, so he started leaving Espio with Charmy while he went off alone to do the more dangerous stuff. Problem solved.

Except now Espio complains that he blows off his responsibility to Charmy and the Agency and leaves the chameleon to do all his boss's work. Honestly, there is no pleasing some people.

Knuckles visibly tensed when Vector suggested he act like a normal person and not hold other people hostage when he wants to have a civil conversation with them. But finally the echidna gives a short and—if he didn't know any better he'd say timid—nod and unties the crocodile.

Vector stood up and stretched, pointedly ignoring the pin prickles that are the body's way of saying, "Why'd you sit on me like that, you jerk?!" and stood up. He motioned for Knuckles to join him on the road.

"Well, we're burning daylight, and unless we start walkin', we ain't goin' nowhere," he said, gingerly taking a step so as to not fall flat on his face when he moved. You know, like you do when your body's mad at you for things that are _completely _not your fault.

Knuckles nodded and fell in step next to Vector, and the two hurried to catch up to a group that already had a significant head start, heading towards a destination they were only vaguely familiar with, neither knowing the correct way to get to said destination either.

Sounds like the plot of a really stupid sitcom, if you think about it.

* * *

><p><strong>And now, the teaser for my next story…<strong>

Tails was so upset and worried that when the phone finally rang he nearly jumped out of his fur. But he quickly picked it up and eagerly asked, "Sonic, is that you?"

"Tails?"

The voice made Tails' heart sink. It was not Sonic on the phone, but rather Rouge the Bat. The two-tailed fox's disappointment swiftly turned to anger, however, and he yelled, "Get off the phone, Rouge! It's chaos outside and I have no idea where Sonic is, he may be trying to contact me right now."

"Tails, turn on the TV. You have to see this."

"This had better be important," Tails muttered as he picked up his remote and obediently turned on the TV. He almost groaned aloud as he saw Eggman's face plastered all over the screen, his stupid face logo thing taking up the background behind him. "Oh, great. It figures he would have something to do with all of this! Of all the times for Sonic to go missing…"

Eggman didn't know about Tails' reaction to seeing him, and if he had he wouldn't have cared. Instead he gave a formal half-bow to the camera and started to speak. "Greetings, citizens of the world. By now you have all realized that millions of people have seemingly disappeared into thin air. Chaos is ruling the streets as those who were driving cars, planes, or heavy machinery disappeared. Houses are burning because people disappeared with their ovens on. People are frantically trying to figure out if someone they know has disappeared. I myself have lost my maternal grandmother who I have confirmed disappeared, and my nephew is missing although I have not confirmed whether he has disappeared, been killed, or is simply unaccounted for at the moment. So I know some of the heartache and worry you are going through.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, today Sonic the Hedgehog disappeared before my eyes as he fought me here at my base. There is no doubt that something extraordinary has happened. I am sure you want to know what it is."

Tails was unaware he had dropped the phone as he gaped at Eggman in shock. Sonic was…gone. No, no this was a trick. It had to be a trick. Sonic would come in the door any moment now, and they'd laugh and wonder what the Egghead was trying to do this time, and then they'd go and stop him like they always did…

Eggman didn't even pause from his presentation after revealing that his arch nemesis was gone and it wasn't his doing. "I'm sure you have questions, so I will start with this: This is not my doing. I am not now nor have I ever experimented with or created anything that could make so many people disappear simultaneously into thin air. I have taken the liberty to hack into the database of every country on the planet and can assure you none of them have any technology, experimental or weaponized, that could do this either. There is no alien activity on any of my deep space scanners at the moment, which rules out alien abduction. There is nothing in the air, water, or ground today that was not there yesterday or the day before.

"There is a saying that after you have eliminated the impossible, whatever is left, however improbable, is the truth. Sonic the hedgehog was what we call a religious fanatic and he believed his God would one day return to earth and cause all of his faithful to fly up into heaven to be with Him, leaving the rest of us to suffer the wrath of God for not giving up our sinful ways and putting our faith in Jesus Christ in what is known as the Tribulation Period. I have cross referenced posts and other electronic devices to learn as much as I can about other known disappearees, and it would seem that, although those from every country and walk of life is gone, all have one thing in common: They were as fanatical in their faith in Jesus Christ as was my nemesis.

"Sonic informed me all about his religious beliefs during our battles, but I gambled that he was wrong and did not listen. I should have known that hedgehog would never let me win anything. Ladies and Gentlemen, God Almighty has just taken his faithful to heaven. And we have been left behind."

Tails didn't hear anything after that. He threw his remote through the TV screen, shattering the screen into a million pieces so Eggman could no longer say things he didn't want to hear, collapsed to his knees, and cried.

**So, sound like something worth pursuing to you guys? I tried something like this once when I was like, 13. I later deleted it because I had ended up just following the storyline of Tim Layhaye and Jerry B. Jenkins Left Behind novels, just gave the characters different names. But this time I'm going for something with more creativity and less plagiarism. Although the very basics will have to be the same because that's how Revelation says everything happens, I am going to do my best so that it doesn't end up as the Left Behind book series with the names of Sonic the Hedgehog characters in place of the book's original characters. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Poison**

**Do horses run on the rocky crags? Does one plow the sea****with oxen? But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into bitterness—Amos 6:** **12**

**Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.—Hebrews 12:15 ****(NLT)**

**Will you forgive?  
>Will you forget?<br>Will you live what you know?  
>He left his rights<br>Will you leave yours?  
>You don't understand it<br>Let it go**

_**Let it Go, **_**Newsboys**

The town of Simin—really, more of an outlaw hangout than a town—was well used to having people of…less respectable character grace its borders. Everyone there was trying to avoid something or someone, and usually the ones they were trying to avoid made a living in the occupation known as law enforcement.

The tavern of Simin, as you can well imagine, saw a lot of business. The owner did not care where you got your money as long as you had it, and if you had other items you wished to dispose of quickly, he would usually have a buyer for it, no questions asked. He also dealt in the very profitable business of information, and you could learn any sort of knowledge you needed on any subject—for the right price, of course. Because of this, nearly everyone who came to Simin always headed right for the tavern as soon as they set foot in town.

Knowing this, some people might be surprised to walk into said tavern and notice that it is the most wretched, filthy hole they had ever seen. Obviously, whatever the bartender was doing with his money, it did not go into reupholstering. The place was large, but it was dirty and the lighting was practically nonexistent. The tables looked like they had been smashed several times and then crudely pieced back together. That was most likely because they _had_—bar fights were quite common around Simin, because bounty hunters also knew how popular the place was with the criminal element. That was also why it was so dark—people inside would be able to see who had come in while his eyes adjusted, giving them time to decide if the newcomer needed to die or not.

The noise in the tavern was low but constant as several different people had several different conversations in different parts of the tavern at all times.

"I'm telling you, I was framed," someone was insisting to the bartender at a table near the doorway.

"Uh-huh," the bartender rolled his eyes, quite used to completely innocent, framed men coming his way.

"I was! And as soon as I find the one-armed man, I'll prove it!"

At yet another table, a group of four were admiring a master thief's latest acquisition: a gigantic, pink diamond he was proudly displaying on the table in front of them.

"Good night, it's huge," one of the admirers said, astonished.

"You know, they say when you look at this diamond in the right light, you can see a pink panther dancing in it," the thief said.

"Well, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard," one of his admirers told him matter-of-factly.

But if one looked at the back of the tavern, where the light was dimmest and the mood most foreboding, they would notice that most of the tables were empty, save for one in the farthest corner to the back. One would have to walk all the way to the back and squint before they would be able to see who was there; and the two dead bodies next to the table greatly discouraged anyone from doing so. The first person had been killed for getting close enough to see who they were; the second had died trying to get rid of the first body.

Everyone else got the hint: these people wanted to be alone. And so they went back to their drinks and ignored the mysterious murderers in the back table.

But luckily, the authoress and her readers are more than capable of getting close enough to observe these people without bodily harm; and it is a good thing too, because they are rather important to the plotline. For the beings in this table are none other than the Destructix, the criminals that Vector and his gang had been chasing when they had gotten trapped in this dimension.

There were five people sitting at the table; four men and a woman. Of these, the woman was obviously calling the shots; she was a red fox wearing black leather, with hard, cold blue eyes, and what appeared to be a revolver pistol strapped to her waist. Her mother had called her Fiona Fox; others called her something _entirely_ different, but not where she could hear them, or she'd kill them for it.

To her left was a large ape in a military outfit, that was so tall he had to bend over slightly in order to fit under the roof of the building. Perhaps this was what made him look so cranky; but personally I think that he always looked like that. He was casually tossing a grenade in the air and catching it; but it seriously looked like he was considering tossing it into the building, just to blow it up for being too small for him. Sergeant Simian did not suffer inconveniences lightly.

Sitting across from him was Lightning Lynx. He had no idea that a parallel version of him had masqueraded as a King's Citizen and had ended up murdering over sixteen hundred people before his death. But if he had, he would have approved of it. He had some skill with martial arts and also seemed to have some sort of bad blood with Espio, something to do with why they both had to flee Japan years ago, but he refused to explain any of the details of his peculiar hatred for the chameleon.

Next to Lynx was a blue-feathered avian known as Predator Hawk. It was not his real name; but it described him perfectly. Hawk enjoyed stalking his prey—the common man would call them victims—before dispatching them. He had a very creepy love of the color red, for all the wrong reasons. His gloves, boots, and headband were of this peculiar color, but rumor had it they were white when he bought them. It was an unconfirmed rumor though.

The last member of the table was psychotic. If one wished to describe the Flying Frog, all they would have to do was say, "Heath Ledger's 'Joker'," and his personality would be established nicely. He wore flight goggles and cargo pants, but most people who saw him would be instantly drawn to his smile, and not because it was pretty. It was wide, and crooked, and it matched the insane gleam in his eyes to a point where he frightened grown men with his pearly whites. Nobody knew how many victims he had had; they only knew that when Flying Frog wanted to 'play' with you, as he called it, you had better run and start praying fast.

Individually, these five were well known. But as the Destructix, they were fairly new and most people were unaware of who the members were. People like Vector, who, had he known exactly who the 'Destructix' were, would never have allowed Charmy to come with him that day to the factory. But all that had been known about the Destructix was that they were responsible for a few thefts and some breaking and entering, and nobody thought that they were particularly dangerous based on the evidence at hand.

It was too late for Vector to try to hide Charmy now, anyway, because the Destructix knew more about who was chasing them, than the detectives currently knew about who they were chasing.

Fiona was glaring at the table, her eyes full of hatred, marring her beautiful face, as she thought about their current predicament. "I can't believe we're trapped in this idiotic world," she snarled. "I have big plans for Station Square, and I can't carry them out here."

"Tell me about it," Predator Hawk muttered. "If those stupid gumshoe detectives had minded their own business instead of hounding us, we wouldn't be here!"

"If I ever see them again, I'll…" as was customary for Sergeant Simian, he decided to let his actions speak for him, as he slammed his fist on their table so hard it cracked in two, sending the meal Lightning Lynx had previously been dining on straight to the floor.

"Hey!" Lynx snarled, glaring at Simian. "You big dope, I was eating that!"

"Oh, yeah?" Sergeant Simian sneered in his face. "Well, now you're done eating it."

"I ought to—"

"Boys, boys, enough," Fiona ordered. "First things first: we need to find a way to get home."

"I want to play with the bee," Flying Frog stated, a faraway look in his eye that suggested he wasn't really hearing the conversation in front of him. There was a dead silence at the table for a moment as everyone digested what he was saying.

Then Predator Hawk gave him an evil grin. "Well, then, when we get home, you can play with the bee until his little heart gives out."

It was a tasteless joke that only the truly morally depraved would find funny. Needless to say, the whole table started to laugh hysterically because of it.

It was that laughter that allowed the cloaked figure to make it to their table before they killed it.

"I can get you home," it informed them.

The laughter abruptly stopped, and everyone turned to glare at the intruder. "You're not dead because you got my attention," Fiona told her with such a false sweetness to her voice it gave one chills. "You have one minute to convince me you're better off alive."

The cloaked figure stiffened considerably, but spoke quickly and there was no tremble in its voice. "The one I serve has enough power to send you back to your world, as well as give you riches beyond your wildest dreams, for a price."

"Ain't that always the way," Predator Hawk quipped, as everyone else nodded. It was basic business. You scratch my back, I scratch yours stuff.

"And what is that…price?" Fiona asked, her hand caressing her gun, as if she was longing to use it.

"Some people have come into this world after you, who are meddling into my Master's affairs. He wishes them eliminated."

"Of course he does," Sergeant Simian muttered. "Well, who are they?"

"I believe they are known in your world as the Chaotix."

There was a look of stunned disbelief on each face as they gawked at the cloaked stranger, but slowly those looks changed to one of pleasure and fiendish delight.

"You mean we're getting paid to off a bunch of losers we were gonna off anyway?" Predator Hawk said eagerly.

"Who says you can't enjoy the fine print?" Lightning Lynx grinned as he thought about what he would do to Espio should he have five minutes alone with him.

Fiona leaned back in her chair and stopped caressing her weapon. "You have a deal, hun."

"Good," the figure removed the hood from her cloak, and Julie Su gave her cohorts a wicked smile. "Let's get started then."

* * *

><p>Espio never really liked port towns, unless he was looking for information, of course. But generally, port towns were too crowded, too active, and too much temptation for hyperactive little bees to run off in, for his tastes.<p>

"Do ya haveta hold my hand?" Charmy whined as he struggled to get out of Espio's grasp.

"Yes."

"But I'm not a baby," Charmy insisted.

"But you are easily distracted and prone to wandering off," Espio replied.

Charmy stopped struggling for a moment as he struggled to comprehend what he had just been told. "What's that mean?" he finally asked.

"It means you have to hold my hand."

"Aw…"

Any rebuttals or pleas Charmy might have had were cut off as a loud bell started to clang. The town's natives froze, expressions of fear crossing their faces, before they all started screaming and running for any shelter that could be found.

"What's going on?" Mighty asked, as the crowd pushed past him.

"The bell is only rung when pirates have attacked the town," Vanilla replied, her body an unnaturally pale color as she hugged Cream to her body.

"Quickly, find a place to hide," Espio ordered, picking up Charmy so there would be no way the crowd could cause them to separate.

"Over there!" Amy pointed to a nearby wine cellar door, which Espio easily pried open. Vanilla, Cream, and Amy quickly stepped into the cellar, the determination in Amy's eyes apparent as she drew her sword. No one would harm anyone down there on her watch.

Espio quickly placed Charmy on the ground and the bee glared at him, indignant at the implication he was to be left behind.

"I can fight!" he protested.

"Stay here and protect the girls," Espio ordered him without missing a beat.

Charmy grinned, happy to realize that he wasn't "really" being left out of the action. "I can do that!"

"I know," Espio replied before looking at Amy. "Don't let him leave this room," he told her.

"He won't."

"Good," the chameleons drew his katana and looked over to Mighty. "Are you coming?"

Mighty's sword was much duller, and next to useless. But he still had his Taser from his job, and he preferred using that anyway, at least while it still had a charge. "I'm with you," he said, drawing his weapon.

"Stay close."

* * *

><p>Outside of the cellar the town was in chaos. People were running in every direction, seemingly without any sort of plan for their own safety. Espio and Mighty pushed through the crowd towards the docks. It didn't seem that there was any sort of police force to protect the town from attacks, because the docks were nearly deserted once they got there. Certainly nobody was volunteering to fight for their home.<p>

The pirate ship itself was huge. A black flag with a white Jolly Roger was flying proudly on its mast, and the words _The Babylon_ was proudly written across the bow. A white bat decked out in full pirate garb was standing on the rails.

"Attention, citizens of the town of Ephus: all your precious gems and other valuables now belong to me and my crew," she cooed. "Don't trouble yourselves with delivery; we'll handle it."

The crew laughed as the bat pointed towards the land. "Alright, Rogues," she yelled to them. "Go fetch!"

An excited yell came from the ship, and the pirates swung to the land and attacked.

There were too many for Espio and Mighty to handle all by themselves; but most of the pirates were too busy pillaging and looting to pay them any mind. Espio knew right from the start that they would not win this battle. But he could make these thieves pay for what they were doing.

And the price would be high indeed.

A few well-placed throwing stars disabled three pirates, pinning them to walls where they could not pillage nor harm anyone. Most of the pirates were poor fighters when they were facing an opponent who would fight back, and so Espio, who was a very good fighter, was able to handle them most efficiently.

Mighty, who most assuredly was about as good a fighter as the majority of the pirates, found himself in a good deal more trouble a good deal faster. At first, most of the pirates gave him a wide berth when he sent one convulsing to the ground courtesy his pocket Taser, but eventually the more bolder ones decided to swarm him and he could not Tase all of them at once. Espio quickly noticed Mighty's plight and fought his way over to him so they could watch each other's backs, or at least so he could watch Mighty's.

Naturally, it would only take a few minutes of such desperate fighting to wear them both down. But the pirates apparently decided that swarming the two of them wasn't working as well as they had hoped, so they backed off. Mighty started to go after them, but Espio held him back, his every sense at the ready.

Something was going to happen soon.

A small quake in the ground startled Espio and he risked looking down briefly. Another quake soon followed it, and then another. With a bad, sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, Espio realized that they weren't quakes at all.

They were footsteps.

"What…" Mighty's question died in his lips as the pirate who was big enough to shake the ground soon stomped into view. It was a massive albatross, who was glaring at them, pounding a fist into his open palm.

"Duh, I'm going to crush you!" he threatened them.

A female swallow broke off from the crowd of pirates that were currently assaulting them and called to her fellows. "C'mon, let's get some treasure. Storm will take care of them."

The pirates cheered, and ran off as Espio and Mighty faced off against the giant bird who was starting to walk towards them again.

Espio calculated his plan of attack as Storm the Albatross moved towards him. He would have to use Aikido and let the brute's force be used against him. Speed and agility would be a must, and he must not make a single mistake, for if the bird got his massive hands around him it would be all over. Espio banished any concern or worry he had and prepared himself in a ready stance.

Storm raised his fists in the air, prepared to strike, and Espio prepared to dodge out of the way, when...a strange look came over Storm's face and he started convulsing.

Espio blinked and stepped back, and only then did he notice the two little wires attached to Storm's chest, leading to Mighty the Security Guard's Taser device. An almost bored look was on the Armadillo's face as Storm shrieked and convulsed, and then the charge was spent. Storm collapsed to the ground, his body twitching frantically, completely out cold.

Mighty reset his Taser and pretended to blow smoke off of the top. Seeing Espio's look, he grinned. "What? It's not like liberal application of Kung Fu is the only way to solve a problem. Aren't we supposed to be stopping pirates?" With that, he rushed off after the remaining pirates, leaving Espio glaring at his back.

"It's not Kung Fu, it's Ninjutsu," the ninja muttered under his breath, before taking off after him.

After dispatching Storm, it was relatively simple to send the rest of the pirates packing. Despite their numbers, they were not willing to work together, nor were they as excited about the prospect of loot that they had to fight to obtain. They wanted easy, frightened targets, not ninjas and security guards armed with weapons that could take out their powerhouse with the simple touch of a button.

The pirates retreated, with only a fraction of the wealth they had hoped to obtain from the town. Espio and Mighty took a second to rest, and then they headed back to the cellar to collect the rest of their party.

Espio opened the door, stuck his head in, and immediately blocked Amy's sword. The pink hedgehog gasped as she realized who she had attacked and she quickly lowered her weapon.

"Oh, Espio!" she cried, looking horrified. "I might have killed you!"

Espio gave her a slight smile. "Not with that form," he replied. "Look, if you hold it like this…" he demonstrated the proper technique. "Now, _that's _the way to attack a potential assailant. It's too easy to block and then disarm you the way you do it."

"Not that learning new and better ways to kill people isn't all fine and dandy," Mighty snarked, "but shouldn't we get out of here?"

"Right," Espio looked down into the cellar, and noted that not only had Charmy miraculously stayed put, he was now proudly 'protecting' about sixteen more people other than those who he was originally ordered to protect. "It's safe to come out now," Espio informed them as he collected his charge and led his group out of the cellar.

* * *

><p>"Will the ship still be running on time after what has happened?" Vanilla asked, holding Cream's hand rather tighter than Cream would have liked.<p>

"Probably not. But we can stay in the inn until the ships start running again," Amy replied.

For the next few minutes, the party walked in silence. But eventually something caught Cream's eyes and she stopped, pointing to a nearby alleyway. "Mommy, Mommy, look!"

Although she specified only her mother should look, the rest of the party stopped and looked to where she was pointing, as well. Vanilla gasped in horror and her hands flew to her mouth. Then she, Amy, Espio, and Mighty all rushed towards the alleyway, while Charmy stayed behind to comfort Cream, who was very upset by the sight she had just seen.

For there was a woman lying in the alleyway, with no less than ten little darts piercing her chest. She was very still. Obviously, she was an unfortunate victim of the pirate attack.

Mighty made it to her first, bending over and taking her wrist, feeling for a pulse. A look of wonder and relief crossed his face. "She's still alive," he called to the others. "Quick, someone go get a doctor!"

"Vanilla is a healer," Amy said, as the rabbit sat next to her and motioned for Espio.

"Those darts are a type of syringe," she told the ninja. "They're pumping a poison into her body; they have to come out."

Espio nodded and knelt, reaching for one of the darts. As soon as he touched one, the victim's eyes flew open and she shrieked.

"Don't worry," Espio told her, as he took the dart more firmly. "We're going to help you."

But the woman only screamed louder. When Espio started trying to pull, the woman suddenly grabbed another of the darts in her chest and with lightning speed, slammed it right into Espio's heart.

Espio jerked backwards at the most intense pain he had ever felt enveloped his heart and he could not stop the scream the escaped his lips. The woman took the opportunity to force herself to her feet and run off.

"Hey!" Mighty yelped, his eyes wide as he reached for his Taser and took aim, his training taking over and labeling the woman as a threat.

"No!" Espio gasped, reaching up and grabbing Mighty's arm, forcing it down. "Don't…she didn't…didn't understand…was only trying to…protect herself…not…not her fault…"

"But she hurt you! You were trying to _help _her!" Mighty spluttered, his eyes round in shock and confusion.

"Not…her…fault," Espio insisted again, before he collapsed to the ground. The dart that was pumping poison into his veins seemingly dislodged itself from his chest and clattered to the ground, as if Espio's very words had pried it out.

Vanilla quickly grabbed the dart and inspected the poison that was trickling out of it. "No…" she sobbed. "It's bitterroot!"

"What's that?" Mighy asked, worry masking his features.

"Bitterroot is the most toxic and deadly poison known to exist," Vanilla whispered. "A victim can live for years with bitterroot in their system, but they are in constant pain the entire time. It's the only poison that not only infects the victim, it actually grows inside of them. Eventually, they become so full of it, that it will literally ooze out of them somehow, usually escaping when they open their mouth to speak. At this stage, they will infect anyone they come into contact with, with this poison. And then it…it just…just eats them up from the inside. And for an infection that starts in the heart like this…there's nothing I can do. "

Charmy tugged on Mighty's pants, causing the armadillo to look down at him. The little bee looked frightened. "Is Espio going to be ok?" he asked.

Mighty's throat felt like something was lodged in it, but he swallowed and knelt down so he was looking Charmy in the eyes. "Charmy," he whispered. "Espio's a fighter. But this is a very bad sickness in his heart, and the doctors can't help him."

Charmy nodded, a thoughtful look crossing his face. "Why don't we ask Jesus to help him? Once, Vector went to the doctor an' found out something was wrong with his kidneys and the doctors couldn't help him, so we all went to church an' Pastor Tony an' everybody prayed that Jesus would give Vector new kidneys an' he did. Now Vector's kidneys are all better! So if Jesus can give Vector new kidneys, then he can give Espio a new heart too, right?"

Mighty just gaped at the boy. "…What?!" he finally spluttered.

Amy caught on to what Charmy was trying to say before Mighty did. "Oh, Vanilla, the King!" she cried. "The King knows more about treating sicknesses and diseases than anyone else in the world! If there's any way to help Espio, the King will know how to do it."

"That just might work," Vanilla said, a spark of hope lighting in her eyes. "I certainly can't help him."

A familiar coo caught their ears, and they turned to see the Spirit perched on a branch above them. **"I can help him, but only if he will let Me," **He said, flying towards Espio.

"Why wouldn't he let you save him?" Charmy asked.

The King's Spirit looked grave. **"Because, letting Me draw out the poison in his system is going to hurt him. A lot."**


End file.
